Falling For You
by SinfulPerfection
Summary: It's the beginning of junior year, and Quinn and Santana have been dating for several months. But when a girl named Brittany becomes Santana's new neighbor, and when Quinn unexpectedly befriends Rachel Berry, what will happen? eventual Faberry/Brittana
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is an AU story. It takes place after the first season, so everything in the second season is completely disregarded. Additionally, there are changes to the first season: Brittany never went to McKinley and Quinn and Santana came out and started dating sometime in April of their sophomore year. Now it is the end of the summer...**

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><p>"Santana!" Mrs. Lopez's voice carried easily up the stairs of the house and right through the closed door of Santana's room. Santana would never know how her mother managed to make herself so loud. "Santana!" the call came again. "I know you're up there! Come downstairs."<p>

Santana groaned into the mouthpiece of her cell phone. "One second," she said. "My mom's calling me." She heaved herself off of her bed and padded over to the door. Opening it, she poked her head out and replied, "I'm on the phone!"

"I don't care!" came her mother's quick response.

Santana put her cell phone back to her ear. "I have to go," she said. "I don't know why. My mom sucks."

"That's okay," Quinn's voice came through the speaker. "Will I see you tonight?"

"Yeah, of course," Santana said with a smirk. "Leave your window open."

"'Kay," Quinn replied, and Santana could hear the excitement in her voice. "I love you."

"Love you too," Santana said before snapping her phone shut. She threw it on her bed and stormed downstairs, trying to make as much noise as she could. "What, Mom?" she snapped when she entered the kitchen.

"It's lovely to see you, too," her mom replied, arranging cookies on a plate. Santana reached for one, but her mom slapped her hand away. "You know, when you wake up in the morning, you could come down and say hi to your family," she said. "It's almost one o'clock and I haven't seen you all day."

"I was busy," Santana replied grumpily, walking over to the refrigerator and opening it. She scanned the shelves for something good to eat. "Talking to Quinn. Aren't you _so_ proud of me for getting a girlfriend and coming out and all of that?"

Her mom walked over to the fridge and shut the door, narrowly missing Santana's hand. Then she placed a kiss on her only daughter's forehead. "Of course I'm proud of you, mija. But that doesn't mean that you need to talk to her every day. You see her enough as it is."

"Do you mind telling me why you keep stopping me from eating anything?" Santana asked in annoyance. She hadn't eaten breakfast or lunch, and she was starving.

"Santana, meals are served at regular intervals in this house," her mother said. "If you wanted to eat, you should have come downstairs. Besides, I need you to do something first." She put a cloth over the plate of cookies and handed them to Santana. "Take these next door."

"No," Santana said immediately, refusing to take the plate from her mother. 'Next door' meant the new family that had just moved in. Santana had seen the moving vans on the street from her bedroom window, but she had yet to catch a glimpse of the people who were becoming their new neighbors. And, quite frankly, she couldn't care less about them. "I hate meeting people and you know that."

"And that's exactly why I'm sending you," Mrs. Lopez said. "You need to learn to be friendly every once in a while. The Pierces have a daughter your age and she doesn't know anyone here. I think it would be really nice of you to reach out to her. And it would be great for her to have a few friends when she starts school next week."

"Mom, there are plenty of other people to be friends with her," Santana whined. "There are, like, three kids my age on this block alone. Why can't she be someone else's service project?"

"Because I said so," her mother said firmly, pressing the plate into Santana's hands. "It would be really nice for me to see you hanging out with someone else besides Quinn and that Noah Puckerman. I think you would really benefit from having some more female friends."

"Mom, no girl wants to be friends with a lesbian," Santana said, rolling her eyes. She begrudgingly took the plate and headed for the door.

"Smile!" her mother called out as Santana slammed the door.

"Yeah, right," Santana muttered, walking across her front lawn. She reached under the cloth and pulled out a cookie to stuff into her mouth. The moving van was gone, but the Pierces had not finished moving everything into their house. Santana weaved her way through several chairs and boxes on the lawn to get to the front door. It was wide open, but there was no one in sight. Sighing, she knocked on the door frame. "Hello?" she called out.

Santana waited in silence for almost a minute, but no one answered. "Hello?" she tried again. If someone didn't come to the door in the next ten seconds, she was going to turn around and go home. Well, first she would go around the side of the house and eat every cookie on the plate. Then she could tell her mom that she'd delivered the welcoming gift successfully. In fact, she was about to do just that, but as she turned around, she heard footsteps behind her. Turning back to the door, she found herself facing a tall blond girl.

"Who were you talking to?" the girl asked, looking around in confusion. This must be the girl that her mother had been talking about, because she looked like she was about Santana's age. She was wearing denim shorts and a gray t-shirt, and her blond hair fell over her shoulders in waves. With a sudden surge of self-consciousness that she rarely felt, Santana wished she had changed into something besides the sweats that she had been wearing since yesterday night. However, it was too late now.

"Uh, I was talking to you, I guess," Santana said, holding out the plate of cookies as an offering. "These are for you. They're, uh, from my mom. We live next door."

"Cool!" the girl said excitedly, taking the cookies. "I'm Brittany."

"Awesome" Santana replied, glancing around awkwardly. "Well, then, I guess I'll just..."

"Brittany, darling, is someone at the door?" came a woman's voice from out of sight. A moment later, a person who had to be Brittany's mother came around the corner. She glanced over at Santana and hurried to the doorway immediately, looking excited. "You must be Santana!" she exclaimed. "I met your mother yesterday! I've been so looking forward to Brittany having someone to hang out with before school starts...Brittany, why didn't you invite her in?"

"I was about to," Brittany said. "But she was talking to someone invisible or something, so I was going to let her finish."

Santana raised an eyebrow, but Brittany's mother did not seem to notice anything odd about the situation. "Well, you should really come in, Santana. I just finished making some grilled chicken and macaroni and cheese. There's lots of extra food if you want some."

"Thanks, but I should get going," Santana began apologetically. "It was nice to meet..." she trailed off as a sudden breeze blew the smell of chicken towards the front door. Santana's stomach growled and her mouth began to water. "I guess I could come in for a second."

"Yay!" Brittany said, handing the plate of cookies to her mother and grabbing Santana's hand. "Come on," she said, dragging a bewildered Santana into the house. "I'll show you around."

So that was how Santana found herself, ten minutes later, sitting down at the kitchen table—the one piece of furniture in the house that had been assembled—to eat lunch with the Pierces. Brittany had taken her around their entire house, which had been relatively uninteresting considering that it consisted of several empty rooms and lots of piles of boxes. Then they had gone into the kitchen, where she'd met Brittany's dad and her younger sister Emily. Though Emily was only thirteen and looked it, it was hard to tell from personality that she was the younger one. She had greeted Santana calmly and had been distracted by her cell phone ever since. Brittany acted like an overexcited five-year-old. Which Santana found fascinating, in a weird sort of way.

"Santana," Mr. Pierce began. He was an official-looking man who reminded Santana of her own father and was nothing like the ditzy Mrs. Pierce. "I hear that you have two brothers?"

Santana swallowed a mouthful of chicken and nodded. "Yeah, there's three of us," she said. "Christian is nineteen and Marco is ten."

"Is Christian away at college?" Mrs. Pierce asked.

"Um, no," Santana said, feeling uncomfortable as she always did when she thought about her unambitious brother. "He still lives with us, actually. He fixes cars and he also works some nights at Olive Garden."

"That's really cool," Brittany said, gazing at Santana as though she were the most interesting person in the world. "I love olives."

Brittany had said several such things in the brief time that Santana had known her, so Santana was no longer taken aback by the blond's strange comments. "I like them, too," she said with a nod.

"And you, you're going to be a junior like Brittany, right?" Mrs. Pierce asked.

"Yep," Santana replied, not really knowing what else to say.

"Well, that's just lovely," Mrs. Pierce said with a satisfied smile. "Brittany can't wait to start school."

Santana could not imagine anyone not being able to wait for school to start. She glanced over at Brittany and saw the other girl roll her eyes. Biting back a smile, Santana said, "The only thing I'm excited for is cheerleading."

"Wait," Emily said, looking up from her phone for the first time since the meal had started. "You're a cheerleader?"

"Yeah," Santana replied, suddenly worried that she had said something wrong. She had refrained from telling them that she was in Glee Club—she didn't want them to think she was a loser—but should she have gone that route instead? The Pierce family was looking at her with something resembling shock. "Why, what is it?" she asked nervously.

"I _love_ cheerleading!" Brittany exclaimed, and Santana breathed a sigh of relief. The other girl was practically bouncing up and down in her seat. "I was a cheerleader at my old school and I was worried that they didn't have a team here and I was so sad and then my mom told me that maybe-"

"Britt's been dancing since she was five," Mr. Pierce interrupted. "It's the only thing I can get her to focus on. Personally, I wish she would spend more time on her studies, but..." He shrugged. "It's her passion."

"Well, you should definitely try out," Santana said, taking another forkful of macaroni. "Coach Sylvester can be pretty tough, but you'll probably make the J.V. team."

"I hope so," Brittany said, looking euphoric. "Dancing is the best."

They finished lunch with more pleasant conversation. The Pierces asked Santana more questions about her family and about school, and she answered as best she could. In the back of her mind, she realized that this was probably the first time she had ever met someone's family before. Judy Fabray was only just beginning to accept her daughter's sexuality and so Santana and Quinn had not yet told her about their relationship. And Santana would never, _ever_, allow Quinn to come out to her father. She didn't mind that she had to tread carefully around Quinn's parents, or that she hadn't been invited to meet Puck's family during their brief, unsatisfying relationship, but it was sort of nice to have someone else's parents show an interest in her the way that Brittany's parents were doing now.

When the meal ended, Emily announced that it was Brittany's turn to wash the dishes, and in a move that Mrs. Lopez would have loved, Santana offered to help. The two girls gathered all of the plates and went into the kitchen. "I'll wash, you dry?" Santana suggested when they reached the sink.

"Okay," Brittany replied happily, going over to one of the boxes in the kitchen and removing a dishtowel. Santana didn't think she had seen the girl stop smiling once. "After we're done, do you want to go do something? I don't know where anything is in this town."

"I can't, I have to help my mom," Santana said. The lie came easily and almost automatically. Internally, she sighed. Brittany seemed like a really nice girl, even if she was really weird. She was also pretty and very outgoing, and Santana knew she would make lots of friends at McKinley without even trying. So she didn't feel that guilty blowing Brittany off. Especially since Brittany seemed so nice; she and Santana wouldn't make good friends anyway.

"Oh," Brittany replied, and her face fell slightly. "How about tomorrow?"

She was persistent. Santana frowned. If she wasn't careful, she might end up actually having to be friends with this girl. Then she remembered what she had told her mom earlier about deterring female friends. "I'm gay," she announced abruptly, watching carefully for Brittany's reaction.

Brittany just stared at her blankly. ""I don't understand," she said.

"Like, I'm a lesbian. I like girls." Santana wasn't sure what was so hard to understand about that, but then again, this Brittany girl was full of surprises.

"I like girls, too," Brittany said with a smile. "Girls are cool."

"No, I mean, I _like _like girls. Instead of boys. Like, I don't date boys."

"Oh," Brittany said, nodding. It seemed she had finally caught on. "Okay. Cool. Is that why you're busy tomorrow? Because you're gay?"

"No..." Santana said slowly. Somehow, she had lost track of this conversation.

"Oh good!" Brittany squealed. "So you can show me around the town, right?" Her face was so hopeful that Santana couldn't bring herself to say no.

"I guess so, sure," Santana said.

"Awesome," Brittany said. Then she stood up and threw her arms around Santana, pulling her into an awkward hug. "I can already tell we're going to be best friends," she said when she pulled away.

In spite of herself, Santana started to smile. "Alright, good," she said in response.

()()()

Santana rolled off of Quinn onto the other side of the bed, trying to catch her breath. Beside her, Quinn was panting. "You're damn good at that, San," she said breathlessly.

Santana smirked at the ceiling. "I know," she said. "I just hope your mom didn't hear anything."

"When she's watching the _Real Housewives_, she's basically oblivious to life," Quinn said, disapproval evident in her voice. "It's good you came through the window, though, anyway. Today she informed me that we need to observe an open door policy when you're here."

"Seriously?" Santana groaned. In her own household, she and Quinn had to keep all the doors open and Quinn was not allowed to spend the night. If the Fabray household adopted the same policy... "We're going to need to find a motel," she pointed out.

"Nah, it'll be fine, she doesn't suspect a thing," Quinn said, moving over on the bed until she was cuddled up against Santana's side. Santana lifted her arm and threaded her fingers through Quinn's hair. "It mostly applies to Rachel, who my mom is convinced I'm dating. She still thinks I hate you."

"Well that doesn't make sense, she knows I'm gay and Rachel is straight," Santana pointed out. Then she paused. "Wait. Rachel?"

Quinn stopped breathing for a moment—Santana could feel that her chest had stopped moving up and down. But after a beat, her breathing started up again. "We've just been hanging out occasionally," Quinn informed her calmly. "It's not weird."

"Um, it's pretty weird," Santana said. "I thought you hated Man-Hands, anyway. Why would you want her to come over?"

Quinn sighed. "She wanted to run a few things by me for when glee club starts up again. And then she wanted to help me practice, and, I don't know, we just started hanging out. She's really not that bad."

Santana scoffed. "Not that bad, my ass. She makes me want to gouge out my eyeballs so that I don't have to look at her."

"I wish you would give her a chance," Quinn said, sounding angrier than she intended. Santana did not miss the tone in her voice.

"What's going on with you?" she asked suspiciously.

"Nothing," Quinn said. There was silence for a few minutes. Santana stroked Quinn's hair absentmindedly. She loved Quinn, but the girl's incessant need to keep her feelings hidden would forever drive Santana insane. However, she herself was not much better. They were an odd pair that way. "You know, Rachel's dads are gay," Quinn said finally.

"Yeah, I know," Santana said. She had heard that before, but she hadn't really thought about it very much. Now that she did, though, she realized that she didn't know that many gay couples besides Rachel's dads who were living in Lima. Rachel was as much a part of the small gay community as Santana and Quinn were. Santana wondered why she hadn't thought about that before.

"They heard about us coming out at the end of last year," Quinn continued. "They were very proud of us."

"As they damn well should be," Santana said. "I mean, when you consider that we came out to everyone and managed to stay top bitches at McKinley, it's pretty impressive."

"Yeah," Quinn said. Her thoughts seemed to be far away.

"Do you want to come with me to hang out with my new neighbor tomorrow? I promised her I would show her around," Santana said, eager to change the subject.

"What exactly do you show someone in Lima?" Quinn wondered aloud. Santana laughed.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I think she just wants someone to hang out with. She was very...enthusiastic. She's going to be in our grade at school."

"Okay," Quinn said. "Sure. Will it be weird for her to hang out with us? Or are we going to play the hetero game again?"

"Nah," Santana said. "I already told her."

"Oh." Quinn sounded surprised. "How did she take it?"

"She didn't care," Santana said. Like Quinn, she was also surprised at how the whole thing had gone down. "It, like, didn't even seem to matter to her. She just wanted to know if I was free tomorrow. Oh, and she wants to be a cheerleader."

"Hm," was all Quinn said in response. "Well, I guess that could be fun. What's her name?"

For reasons that she couldn't quite interpret, Santana began to smile. "It's Brittany," she said.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Just to let you know, I am planning on addressing the back story (how Santana and Quinn got together, came out, etc.) in future chapters, through some flashbacks and stuff. As always, thanks for reading :)**

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><p>Quinn was woken up early the next morning by her phone buzzing on her nightstand. As she rolled over sleepily and picked it up, she glanced at the clock. 7 A.M. There was only one person who would be up this early. She looked at the home screen on her phone and was not surprised to see who it was.<p>

**Rachel: **Sorry if I woke you up, but I just saw the same creeper from last week on my morning run!

Quinn smiled as she read the message. Last week, she and Rachel had been hanging out at the park when they suddenly found themselves being stared down by a creepy old man. They had waited for ten minutes, but he had not gone away or stopped looking at them. They eventually decided they had to leave as soon as possible, but the whole situation had been more amusing than frightening. Quinn chuckled to herself as she responded.

**Quinn: **don't let him see where you live! pretend to go into finn's house, maybe the creeper will stalk him instead

She pressed send and settled back onto her pillow, satisfied. Rachel and Finn had broken up at the beginning of the summer, and Rachel was handling it fairly well, though the occasional insult did seem to help her cope. It was one of the reasons they had bonded, actually. Quinn hadn't been lying to Santana when she said that they had started hanging out to practice for Glee rehearsals, but their friendship had become so much more than that. Ever since Quinn had come out, she had been much less inclined to be a bully. So when Rachel had sent a mass text to the Glee Club about a month ago asking if anyone wanted to have a meeting to discuss the coming year, Quinn responded out of a sense of guilt, and the two girls had been growing closer ever since. It was nice to have someone besides Santana to talk to every once in a while, and Rachel had been surprisingly open to discussing Quinn's sapphic ways. She had actually been pretty helpful when Quinn needed advice on her relationship. Being with Santana was many things, but low maintenance wasn't one of them.

Knowing she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, Quinn decided to get up and take a shower. When she was done, she put on a pair of denim shorts and a pink tank-top. Once she had blow-dried her hair, she went out into the kitchen to get breakfast. Judy was up, sitting at the kitchen table, with her usual breakfast of coffee. "Hi, mom," Quinn said, finding her cereal in the cabinet.

"Hi, sweetie," Judy replied, her eyes fixed on the small T.V. next to the table. She was watching the morning news, but Quinn suspected that she only watched it for appearance's sake. Her mother liked reality shows, but not reality. "What are your plans for today?" she asked.

"Well," Quinn began, but as she spoke, her phone buzzed from her pocket. She pulled it out and checked the text.

**Santana: **my house at 10. we're going to the mall

"I'm going to go out with some friends today," she said, putting the phone back in her pocket. "To the mall."

"Which friends?" her mother asked. Ever since the Beth debacle—and since Judy and Russell had officially gotten divorced—Quinn's comings and goings had become a sort of obsession of her mother's. Judy had nothing else in her life to focus on, and there was also the fact that she had a suspicion that Quinn was getting down and dirty with some girl and she was determined to find out who.

"Santana and her friend," Quinn responded, knowing that her mom would be suspicious no matter who she said she was hanging out with. "I haven't met her yet. Her name is Brittany."

"Oh," Judy replied simply. "Is this girl, like, Santana's girlfriend?" Quinn blushed. Though she knew it was better for her and Santana to wait until Judy was more comfortable with her daughter's sexuality before telling her that they were dating, the protection of their relationship came at the price of awkward moments like these. More importantly, though, Quinn easily picked up on her mother's scathing tone when she said 'girlfriend.' Quinn frowned in annoyance.

"You know, it's not really very nice to sound so disapproving, considering...the situation," Quinn reminded her mother.

"Oh, Quinnie," Judy said, "it has nothing to do with the fact that Santana is a homosexual. You know that I don't care about that," she said. Quinn raised her eyebrows in disbelief. "It's just that I've never much cared for her. You know that. And I was under the impression that you didn't like her either."

"No Mom. We're friends. So you don't need to be mean about her in front of me," she said. "And Brittany isn't her girlfriend, so don't worry. We won't be sneaking off to have steamy, lesbian threesomes any time soon."

Judy flushed with embarrassment. "I wasn't insinuating that at all, Quinn. And I would appreciate it if you didn't use language like that."

Quinn snorted. "What language? Lesbian? Is that, like, a bad word now?"

"Don't get smart with me," Judy warned. She turned off the T.V. and gave Quinn a dangerous look. "You know that I meant the combination of those words in that particular order. It would be nice if you started acting a little bit more mature. And also, you need to stop suggesting that I am some sort of homophobe. You know full well that I have done nothing but respect you since you came out to me three months ago."

"Yeah, yeah, alright," Quinn said by way of apology. "I'm going to eat my cereal in my room."

"Fine," Judy said, turning back to stare at the now-blank television screen. "You do what you need to do."

"I will," Quinn said, picking up her cereal bowl and leaving the kitchen in a hurry. Fights like this with her mother were quickly becoming an almost daily occurrence. She knew that she was partly to blame for giving her mother a hard time. After all, she knew firsthand how difficult it had been to accept herself being gay, and it was only fair for her to give her mother the same chance to adjust. But it was frustrating to go from being at Santana's house, with her parents who constantly joked about her sexual orientation as if it were nothing, to go home to her own mother and have to step around the issue as though it were a land mine.

She spent the next two hours killing time in front of her computer. Rachel had sent her an article about the foods that allowed for optimal vocal performance, and Quinn found herself jotting down a few notes, despite her previous declarations that she was not that into Glee Club. With a smile, she noted that she was starting to become more and more like Rachel every day. _Santana's going to love that_, she thought to herself. Her girlfriend had emailed her a video of a wheelchair being pushed off the cliff, with the message 'Let's get Artie before school starts' written underneath. With a smirk, Quinn responded that she thought it would be a great idea. Her last unread message was from her father. Right after Beth had been born, he had started emailing her every week or two. She hadn't wanted to respond at first, but her mother had forced her to, so she had gotten into the habit of writing down a few sentences now and then. She and Judy had agreed not to tell him about—as Judy liked to put it—her alternative lifestyle, and since that had been a pretty big part of her life recently, she usually had nothing to say to him. Quinn scanned the email quickly, which was mostly full of random things about his life that she couldn't have cared less about, and closed her browser. She would respond later—maybe after drinking a wine cooler.

Somehow, 9:45 rolled around, and Quinn got up from her desk and grabbed her purse. "Bye, Mom!" she called loudly as she headed for the door, not caring whether or not her mother heard her. She went out to her car and drove the familiar road to Lima Heights Adjacent, which—despite popular rumor—was only considered ghetto because of Santana's propensity for walking around and yelling swearwords at the neighbors. She arrived about five minutes early, which in Santana-speak translated to five minutes of making out against the inside of the front door. Quinn had barely closed the door behind her when she found herself pinned against it.

"By the way," Quinn said as Santana's lips moved to her neck and began sucking, "this barely counts as inviting me in."

Santana moved her mouth a fraction of an inch away from Quinn's skin. "Any farther in and my mom will notice you're here, and then no one will leave us unattended for longer than three minutes," she murmured before attacking Quinn's collarbone once more.

"I guess that's reasonable," Quinn said, and she lifted Santana's face so that their lips could meet again. They kissed passionately for a little while longer, until they were finally interrupted by a knock on the door. Santana groaned and Quinn moved out of the way. She checked the time on her phone as she did so. "Wow, she's very prompt."

"Unfortunately," Santana said as she pulled open the door. Her face broke into a smile. "Brittany," she said. "Hey."

"Hey back," Brittany responded, and Quinn pulled the door open all the way so that she could give the girl a once-over. The first thing Quinn noticed was her legs—not the fault of her perverted mind, either. They were mostly uncovered due to very short shorts, and they were very long. Brittany had at least four inches on both her and Santana. They were also very toned, which was not surprising, since Santana had mentioned that Brittany was into dancing. Quinn's eyes traveled up to the girl's face, which was pretty cute. The girl was looking back and forth from Santana to Quinn with some confusion.

Santana cleared her throat. "Sorry," she said. "This is Quinn. My, um, girlfriend." Quinn blushed slightly when Santana said that. She knew that Santana had told Brittany about her but she hadn't been prepared for the truth to be laid out so bluntly to a complete stranger. However, Brittany didn't even blink.

"Nice to meet you, Quinn," she said, extending a hand. Quinn shook it briefly. "Quinn. That's a really cool name. I like it."

"Uh, thanks," Quinn replied. Santana had also warned her that Brittany was a little odd.

"Should we go?" Santana asked.

"Sure," Quinn said with a nod, and the three of them headed to Quinn's car.

The trip to the mall was surprisingly fun. Brittany was easy to get along with, once Quinn got used to her strange interjections every once in a while. They hit several stores before lunch time, and the three of them had fun trying on clothes and laughing and talking together. It reminded Quinn of a few years ago when she and Santana would hang out at the mall almost every weekend with a couple of other girls from the Cheerios. That was back when Santana was dating Puck and Quinn was dating Finn and every girl in the school wanted to be them. Now, everyone pretty much avoided them, although Quinn wasn't sure if that was because they were dating each other or because they were both total bitches. Either way, it was nice that Brittany did not seem to care, and whether or not that would change once she made new friends and found out about Quinn's and Santana's reputation, Quinn decided to enjoy the moment for now. Additionally, Quinn had never seen Santana be so nice to someone before. It was kind of sweet.

When they began to get hungry, they stopped by the food court to get some lunch, and the day met it's first hiccup in the form of Dave Karofsky. He was with Puck, Azimio, and a few other guys from the football team whose names Quinn had not bothered to learn. She tried to subtly steer Santana and Brittany in the other direction, but the boys noticed them before she could. With a sinking feeling in her stomach, Quinn watched as Karofsky elbowed the two boys next to him and made a beeline towards her.

"'Sup lesbos," Karofsky said when he got closer. "Who's the third wheel?"

"Maybe she's getting in on the action," Azimio suggested. There was a round of laughter. Quinn wanted to die. She knew that Brittany would never want to hang out with them after this.

"Shut it, Steak Face," Santana growled at Karofsky. "Do you want me to make you cry again?"

Karofsky forced a laugh. "You never made me cry," he said, but Quinn could see a slight blush on his face. "Anyway, no one cares about you anymore, dyke. We only liked you when you slept with us."

Santana grew pale. Quinn looked desperately for Puck and found him a few feet away, buying an ice cream. He looked up and caught Quinn's eye, and she gave him a pleading look. Puck's gaze darted between the girls and the guys and he pulled out his wallet quickly to pay for his dessert. Satisfied that he was coming to help them, she turned back to Karofsky. "Use that word again and I'll kick your ass," she said in a low voice.

"Are you serious?" Karofsky said disbelievingly. "You're going to kick my ass? You and what army?"

"I'd be in her army," Brittany piped up, to Quinn's surprise. "Would we get to wear helmets?"

Karofsky clearly hadn't expected an answer to his rhetorical question, and he looked around uncertainly. "Doesn't matter," he said finally. "I could beat up a couple of girls any day of the week."

"I wouldn't count on that, Karofsky," Puck said, walking up to them with an ice cream in hand. "You can barely take a one-fifty pound wide receiver these days. You planning on playing varsity this year?"

Another laugh went around the circle, but this time it was at Karofsky's expense. The boy turned red and began to splutter. "I—I am moving up to varsity," he said.

"Second string, hopefully," Puck said. "Anyway," he motioned to Quinn, Santana, and Brittany, "these ladies are with me. So maybe you could give us a moment alone?"

"You're lying," Azimio said. "They're not with you. They're totally gay."

Puck shrugged. "Doesn't mean they don't want to get on this," he said, pointing to his chest proudly. "Now please, get the hell away." The boys grumbled but left obligingly. Quinn waited until they were out of earshot before turning to Puck and breathing a much needed sigh of relief.

"Thank you," she said.

"No problemo," Puck replied. "Those stupid douchebags need to be put in their place every once in a while." His eyes settled on Brittany. "Who's this?" he asked.

"This is Brittany," Santana said quickly. "My neighbor. She's starting at McKinley next week."

"Sweet. I'm Puck," he said, shaking her hand. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too," Brittany replied, and Puck gave her a small wink. "Who were those guys? Were they your friends?"

"Just some homophobes on the football team," he said with a shrug. "They're not really my friends. I can't believe they would pull that shit, anyway. They know I'm your lesbro. They probably just saw that I was distracted and decided to come over and act obnoxious." He took a long lick from his ice cream. "They never would have been brave enough to pull that if I had been here."

"Yeah, don't flatter yourself," Santana said with an eyeroll, but Quinn could tell that she was secretly grateful that Puck had stepped in. In an uncharacteristic move, she turned to Brittany apologetically. "I'm sorry you had to get in the middle of that." She looked anxious as she waited for Brittany's response, and Quinn knew that, like her, Santana was scared that Brittany was about to realize the implications of being friends with people like themselves.

"It doesn't matter," Brittany said. "They were rude. I didn't know what that word meant but I could tell it was bad. He was using his mean voice like my mom uses when she tells my dad that he spends too much time working and needs to spend more time with the family. I don't like the mean voice." She looked from Santana to Quinn. "If I were a boy on the football team, I would be too scared to talk to you like that."

"They're only brave because they're all together," Puck said. "None of them would dare take Santana on their own." He looked at Santana proudly. "She's a hard ass. I better go catch up with them, we were just getting lunch before our afternoon practice." He looked at Brittany for a long moment. "It was nice to meet you. Maybe I'll see you around?"

"Yeah sure," Brittany said, smiling eagerly. Puck turned to leave, glancing back at Brittany one last time before he left the food court altogether. "He seems nice, I liked him," Brittany said when he was gone. "Is he your friend?"

"He's mostly Santana's friend," Quinn replied.

"Oh. Why is he not your friend? Did you have a fight or something?"

Santana started to laugh. Quinn just shook her head in amusement. "That," she said to Brittany's inquisitive expression, "is a story for another time."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Guys, I got a Tumblr! It's sinfulperfection . tumblr . com (without the spaces, obviously). I need Gleeks, especially Faberry and Brittana shippers, to follow, so come and find me so I can follow you :)**

* * *

><p>When Quinn got home from Santana's, she checked her phone to find a text from Rachel.<p>

**Rachel: **Come over soon? We need to talk

Quinn hoped that the serious tone was only the result of the fact that the words were typed out instead of spoken. With some trepidation, she responded.

**Quinn: **i'll come over now

She went to her room to drop off her shopping bags and came back to find her mother dozing off on the couch. Quinn debated whether or not she should wake her, but there was no need—Judy began to stir. Her eyes opened and she looked up at Quinn groggily.

"Hey Mom, I'm going over to Rachel's house for a little bit," Quinn said quietly.

"Okay," Judy responded in a whisper. "Will her parents be home?" Like everyone else in Lima, Judy knew that Rachel had two gay fathers, but unlike everyone else, she insisted on referring to them as Rachel's 'parents' instead of Rachel's 'dads.' It was a small thing, but it irked Quinn nonetheless.

"Yeah, they'll be home," Quinn said with a sigh, tuning to leave the room. "Not that it matters because we're not dating." She said the last part mostly to herself, because she had told her mom that she wasn't seeing Rachel countless times, and she doubted at this point that it would make a difference. "Bye," she called out as she headed for the front door.

Rachel did not live far from Quinn, so Quinn decided to walk. It would give her a chance to collect her thoughts, anyway. For the last couple of days, she and Rachel hadn't hung out, although they had continued to text. It was entirely possible, therefore, that Rachel wanted to 'talk' about some new song selections for Glee Club or another conversation that she'd had with Finn. However, Quinn had a feeling that Rachel had something else in mind. The last time they'd been together, they'd gone to see a new movie at the mall. And something had sort of happened...

Quinn decided that she wouldn't bring it up if Rachel didn't. Instead, as she reached the Berry's house, she plastered on a big smile and vowed to act as normal as she possibly could. Leroy Berry answered the door, and Quinn said, "Hi, Mr. Berry!" with as much enthusiasm as she possibly could.

"Hi, Quinn," he said with a chuckle. "Someone's in a good mood today." He moved aside to let her in.

"It's a nice day," Quinn said with a shrug. "How are you?"

"Oh, I'm doing great," he said, closing the door behind her. "I was just making some tea. Are you hungry or anything?"

"No, thanks, I'm fine," Quinn said. "Is Rachel upstairs?"

"Yeah, she's in her room," Leroy said. "Rach!" he called. "You can go up if you want."

Quinn walked towards the staircase just as Rachel's head appeared at the top. "Oh, hey Quinn," she said. She was smiling, but there was a serious look in her eyes that made Quinn nervous. "Do you wanna come upstairs?"

"Sure," Quinn said. She glanced over at Leroy, but he had disappeared into the kitchen. Feeling suddenly awkward in the house that she had been to countless times in the last month, she made her way up the stairs towards Rachel. When she'd reached the top, she followed the shorter girl into her bedroom. Rachel paused in the doorway so she could close her door behind Quinn.

"So," Rachel said, taking a seat on the edge of her bed. "What did you do today?" Quinn sat down in Rachel's desk chair and looked at the other girl questioningly. It was unlike Rachel to engage in small talk—although she was very good at it in awkward situations, she usually had a detailed plan for conversation that left little time for things that were not strictly necessary. Quinn had expected such a plan when Rachel had said 'we need to talk,' and the apparent nervousness in her friend was unsettling.

"Well," Quinn began, "Santana and I went to the mall with her new neighbor, Brittany. And then Brittany went home and Santana and I watched T.V. for a little bit." She shrugged. "Not too interesting. What did you do?"

"Oh, nothing of consequence," Rachel said, looking down at her bedspread. She began to trace her fingers along the outline of the flowery design. "So you and Santana are still together, then?"

Quinn sighed. She had known this was coming. "Rachel," she said. "I love Santana."

"I don't doubt that you do," Rachel said quickly. "After all, you two have been friends for many, many years, and you both helped each other through the tumultuous coming out process, and you have been dating for several months now. I just can't help but wonder if some of the attraction between the two of you is only a manifestation of the convenience of your relationship. I mean, considering that she is the only other lesbian that you know, and vice versa."

Quinn raised an eyebrow. "The _only_ lesbian I know?"

Rachel blushed. "I am yet unsure as to my own sexual orientation. I don't wish to label myself as something that I find rather confining, when I could possibly be allowing myself to explore further. I just," she looked at Quinn uncertainly, "I just want to be sure that this—that _us—_means what I think it means."

Quinn slumped down in her chair, already feeling tired. "Alright," she conceded. "Let's talk about this. So, let's start from three days ago. Or do you have an outline prepared?"

Rachel blushed but managed a slight chuckle. "Actually," she said, reaching into her pocket self-consciously, "I jotted down a few things that I wanted to make sure I remembered to discuss." She pulled out a note card and looked at it for a moment. "I was hoping we could start from one month ago."

Quinn sighed and rubbed her temples. "This is going to take freaking forever."

"I'll be brief, I promise," Rachel said, worry evident in her eyes. Quinn gave her a look to indicate that she should continue. "So when you were the only one in Glee Club who would come and meet with me to discuss a plan for the new year, what was going through your mind?" She looked at Quinn expectantly. Quinn felt as though she were at some sort of interview.

"I felt bad," Quinn said with a shrug. "I treated you badly last year. And then when I came out, and the tables were turned, you never did anything to me. That could have been your chance for some payback, and you didn't take it."

"I would never engage in any homophobic bullying," Rachel said with narrowed eyes. "You know that."

"Of course," Quinn said quickly. "I just meant...I just admired you more, and I felt bad for treating you the way I did, and I had hoped that we could reach some sort of truce."

"Alright," Rachel said, satisfied. She glanced back down at the note card. "And then you agreed to meet me again so that I could help you with your singing. Was that a further extension of your seeking atonement, or did you have other motives at that point?"

"Honestly, Rach, I just wanted to be able to sing better," Quinn said tiredly. "I have a question for you. Why did you want to help me?"

Rachel bit her lip. "I guess I just wanted to seize on an opportunity to gain some popularity. After Finn's rejection at the beginning of the summer, I felt that I didn't have very many friends. And I had thought that maybe, through you, I could improve my social standing. Though I must add that I never meant to use you in any way, and that it quickly became about something else."

"What 'something else'?" Quinn asked, her voice quiet and serious. Her heart was pounding and she wasn't sure that she wanted to hear the answer.

Rachel blushed. "Friendship, I suppose," she said. "I enjoyed spending time with you. And my dads were really happy that I was branching out and making some more friends. They were really proud of me. And also, for the first time, I felt that I didn't need Finn's affections to validate my worth."

"Wow," was all Quinn could say in reply. She felt a sudden pull of sympathy and fondness for the girl in front of her, and she got up so she could sit next to Rachel on the bed. "You never needed stupid Finn," she said. "Please know that."

"I know," Rachel said, suddenly on the verge of tears. She leaned over and placed her head lightly on Quinn's shoulder. Quinn wrapped an arm around Rachel's waist.

"What's next on your card?" she asked, reaching for it with her other hand. However, Rachel crumpled it into a ball and let it fall to the ground before Quinn could take it.

"Why did you try to kiss me three days ago?" she asked in barely more than a whisper.

"I don't know," Quinn answered honestly. "We went to the movies and you insisted on paying for my ticket. And then you held the door open for me and acted all charming. I was...confused. I felt like it was a date. So when I dropped you off at home, I don't know, it just felt right to try and kiss you. And then I stopped myself, of course."

"I didn't want you to stop yourself," Rachel muttered, staring fixedly at the ground.

Quinn chuckled. "I know. I could tell. But it wouldn't have been right, anyway. I'm with Santana."

"Yeah," Rachel said sadly. She lifted her head from Quinn's shoulder and looked into her eyes. "I guess my last point on the card was...what do you feel for me?"

Quinn thought for a long time before answering. "It's not the same as it is with Santana," she said finally. "That doesn't mean it's better or worse, it's just different."

Rachel pouted. "That's not a very informative answer."

"I know," Quinn said apologetically. "But it's the best I can give you right now." She removed her hand from Rachel's waist and pulled her knees up to her chest. "So if I were to make a card," she began, "my question would be, what do _you_ feel for _me_?"

"I suppose I can't give an answer any better than yours," Rachel said regretfully. "I genuinely enjoyed the time I spent with you at the movies, and all the time that I spent with you before that, and I must admit that I have considered the possibility of a romantic relationship between the two of us. But it seems like just recently that I was in love with Finn, and I would hate to discover that my feelings for you are the result of my emotional vulnerability or a desire for a rebound."

Quinn felt disappointment at Rachel's words, but she forced herself to shrug it off. "Yeah, I know what you mean," she said. "It seems like it would be better for both of us if we just sort of...forgot that this ever happened."

"I suppose it would be best," Rachel agreed, though Quinn could tell that Rachel did not find the idea very satisfying. "On another topic, school is drawing very close. Should I expect this friendship to end on day one in the form of a slushie facial?" She smiled to show that she was kidding, but Quinn could tell that Rachel was legitimately concerned.

"I don't know, I might wait until day two," Quinn said with a shrug. She laughed at the look of instant fear that crossed Rachel's face. "Don't worry," she said. "I'll try to be seen with you in public at least three times a day."

"Good," Rachel said with a grin. "And I'll try to give you at least one solo in Glee Club."

"I'm flattered," Quinn laughingly replied.

* * *

><p>"Mom, Christian and I are going to Puck's house," Santana informed her parents as they sat in the living room, watching the evening news. "He just got Halo Reach."<p>

"I wanna go!" Marco called from the other room. Santana shook her head vigorously at her mother.

"Another time, mijo," her mother replied. Then she turned to Santana. "What time will you be home? I don't want you three staying up all night playing Xbox like you did last week."

"We won't, I have to work tomorrow morning," Christian said, entering the room holding a bag of chips. "Come on, San, let's go."

"You know, every time you go to that boy's house, you come back swearing and mouthing off even more than you already do," Mr. Lopez pointed out. "Is it really good for you to be spending so much time with obnoxious boys like Noah and your brother?"

Santana's mother laughed and Christian rolled his eyes. "Santana is a bad influence on _us_," Christian pointed out. "And besides, she likes hanging out with boys more than girls."

"Okay, but regardless," their father continued, "there are several other nice boys you could be spending time with. Like the one we met at the end of the year Glee Club party. What was his name? Kurt?"

"Dad, I'm not friends with Kurt," Santana said in exasperation. "Why do you assume all gay people are friends with each other?"

"Well, it's sort of true," Christian reasoned. "Look at you and Quinn."

"Quinn and I are dating, stupid," Santana snapped at him. "Can we just go, please? I wants to get my Xbox on."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, you can't play for shit," Christian said, heading for the front door.

"I can too, asshole!" she said, following him.

"Language!" Mrs. Lopez protested halfheartedly as her older children left the house. When they left, she rolled her eyes. "I don't know how we ended up with such rude kids," she said with a sigh.

Mr. Lopez laughed and put an arm around his wife. "Maybe we should just take them to the edge of town and leave them there," he suggested.

Fifteen minutes later, Santana was situated between Puck and Christian in the Puckerman's basement, staring fixedly at the T.V. Puck and Christian were playing first and Santana was watching. She had thrown a fit about it, but they couldn't play with three people, and she had lost rock-paper-scissors fair and square.

"So that Brittany girl who you were at the mall with is your neighbor?" Puck asked as they played.

"Yeah," Santana replied through a mouthful of chips. "Why?"

"I don't know. She seemed pretty cool," Puck said. "And she's going to be in our class, right?"

"Wait, is she the one who's your age who just moved in?" Christian asked. "I think I saw her yesterday. She was pretty hot."

"Ugh, shut up, Chris," Santana said in disgust. "She's sixteen."

"It was just an observation, little sis," Christian replied with an eyeroll. "You seriously need to calm down."

"I'm with Chris, she was hot," Puck said. "And she gave me the eye. Do you think she'd go out with me?"

"Puck, no one gave you the eye," Santana said. For some reason, the thought of Puck going out with Brittany annoyed her greatly. "And I don't think she's going to want to be in a relationship the second she gets to school, anyway."

Puck shrugged. "Who said anything about a relationship?" Santana shoved Puck's controller out of his hands and watched as his character got shot several times. "The fuck, Santana?" he demanded angrily.

"Don't be such a douche," she responded calmly, settling back on the couch and popping another chip into her mouth. Puck grabbed his controller and continued to play, seething.

"Santana, seriously, stop being such a bitch," Christian said. "What, do you have, like, a crush on her or something?"

"No," Santana replied, blushing. "I just don't the first impression she gets of guys in Lima should be Puck trying to pick her up. Besides, the two girls you slept with ended up going gay for each other. You don't exactly have the best track record."

"Whatever, Santana," Puck said, pausing the game so he could flip her off. "If I make Brittany gay, you can thank me."

"Why would I thank you?" Santana asked. Puck and Christian just shared a look and then went back to playing. "Seriously, Puck," she demanded. "Why would I thank you?"


	4. Chapter 4

The last week of summer vacation passed too quickly for Santana's taste. It consisted mostly of school supply shopping, making out with Quinn, finishing her summer reading assignment, making out with Quinn, and swimming. And making out with Quinn. At the same time.

Santana had been dating Quinn for four months and had been out to her parents for three and a half, meaning she had long since learned how to get around her mom's constant supervision of the two of them. The trick, she realized, was to go to places so public that Santana's parents would assume Santana and Quinn didn't dare fool around there. But there was very little that Santana would not dare to do.

"Remember the window," Quinn reminded as Santana pinned her up against the side of the pool and reached her hand down between her girlfriend's legs.

"What window?" Santana replied, placing wet kisses along Quinn's neck. "The first floor curtains are closed and no one could see us unless they were in my bedroom."

Quinn grabbed the back of Santana's neck and kissed her roughly. She pulled away a fraction of an inch. "No, I mean the other window. The one next door..." There was a pause as they began to kiss passionately again. Quinn moaned.

Santana stopped kissing Quinn to take a breath. "Next door?" she asked, momentarily confused. Then she remembered. When she and Quinn had had their first swimming pool rendezvous, they had noticed that besides a few windows in Santana's house, the only other place where they could be seen from was one second floor window in the house next door. Before the Pierces had moved in, that house had been occupied by an old cat lady who had become too invalid to go upstairs—presumably, that was why she had moved out. So they hadn't really had anything to worry about. But now, there were four people in the other house who could potentially see them. Santana tried to remember from the tour that Brittany had given her which room the window belonged to. It must have been one of the bedrooms—but whose?

"Why did you stop?" Quinn asked with a pout.

"Huh?" Santana turned her attention back to her girlfriend and realized that she had been still for almost thirty seconds. "Oh. Well aren't you afraid of getting caught?"

Quinn groaned and reached down to grab Santana's hand and begin moving it against herself. "Right now, I honestly couldn't care less," she said. "Keep going."

"Alright," Santana replied with a smirk, leaning forward to kiss Quinn again. But she was slightly unsettled, and her eyes kept traveling up to the window to make sure no one was looking through it. There were no curtains over it, and in the darkening evening sky it was hard to see if anyone was in the room. But as Quinn buried her face in the crook of Santana's neck and let out a shuddering moan, Santana forgot all about the window. She held on to her girlfriend as her breathing rate slowed. Once it returned to normal, Quinn lifted her head and rested her forehead against Santana's.

"Your turn," she said in a low voice, and in a matter of seconds, their position was reversed. Quinn slid her hands under the fabric of Santana's bikini top and cupped her breasts. Santana leaned her head back.

"I love you," she groaned.

"I love you too," Quinn replied. She slid one of her hands all the way down Santana's front, over her stomach, underneath her bathing suit. Without wasting a moment, she slid two fingers into Santana. Santana gasped and threw her arms around Quinn's neck to steady herself.

"You're so good," Santana breathed as Quinn moved her fingers in and out. She bit her lip hard to keep from crying out, but she couldn't prevent the occasional moans that escaped from her lips. Doing it out here was dangerous, especially since her mother was cooking dinner right inside and could easily move aside the curtain to check on them if they made too much noise. But the risk was part of the thrill, and the knowledge that they could be caught at any second made Santana's body tingle. "Shit..." she moaned as she felt an orgasm rip through her body. She dug her fingernails into Quinn's back and panted as her entire body buzzed with delight. Quinn kept pumping until the very end, when Santana's body finally relaxed and she sank into Quinn's embrace.

"Mmm," Quinn said as she removed her fingers and leaned forward to give Santana a long, lingering kiss. Santana kissed her back, moving her hands through Quinn's wet hair and massaging her scalp. They remained like that for several minutes until they were interrupted by the sound of the back door opening.

"Gross, stop kissing!" Marco called from the doorway, causing Santana and Quinn to break apart and look up. "Mom says you need to come in for dinner and that Quinn can stay and eat here if she wants." He disappeared back inside.

Santana turned and looked into Quinn's eyes. "What do you say?" she asked. "Do you want to stay here and _eat_?" She looked at Quinn seductively.

Quinn snickered and swam out of Santana's grasp. "You have such a dirty mind," she said, heading for the stairs. "I'll stay and eat _dinner_. But then I'm going home. We have school tomorrow, remember?"

Santana pouted. "Fine," she said. "But you owe me, then."

"Oh, don't worry," Quinn said, turning around to give Santana a suggestive wink. However, her face became serious as she looked past Santana and her eyes trailed upward.

"What?" Santana asked, turning around. "What are you looking at?"

"I just—I thought I saw someone looking through the window," she said, her gaze still fixed on the house. "But I think they're gone now..."

"You're just imagining things," Santana assured her, though she felt slightly nervous. Perhaps sexy times in the pool had not been one of her better ideas. "Come on, let's go in." She pushed off of the wall and swam towards Quinn and the stairs.

Quinn shrugged. "Alright," she said, following Santana out of the pool.

* * *

><p>Brittany's mother had called Santana's and they had together decided that the two girls should carpool on the first day of school. Normally, Santana would be opposed to her mother making plans for her like she was a first grader, but she was kind of looking forward to seeing Brittany again. Since their trip to the mall a week ago, the only time she'd seen Brittany was when they both happened to be outside at the same time, and then they'd only exchanged a quick hello as they went their separate ways. During another video game session, Puck had told Santana he'd run into Brittany at the gas station and had introduced her to Finn and Mike, and all of them had 'gotten along really well.' Santana suspected that the meeting had not been entirely coincidental, but she decided not to make a big deal about it. After all, Brittany was supposed to be making new friends, wasn't she?<p>

Still, Santana felt very relieved when Brittany arrived at her house in the morning and immediately gave her a hug. "I missed you all week!" she exclaimed. "Where were you?"

"I don't know, where were you?" Santana replied with a smile, grabbing her backpack and her keys. "Bye!" she called to her family as she stepped outside with Brittany and closed her front door.

"Well," Brittany said as they walked to Santana's car, "on Monday and Tuesday I helped my daddy paint my room yellow. On Wednesday I had to take Emily to the store so she could buy some new clothes for school. Then on Thursday the paint was dry so I moved my bed into my room and started to unpack my stuff, and then my dad told me to fill up the car with gas so I went to the gas station-"

"Wait," Santana interrupted, getting into the driver's seat and turning on her car. "Did you meet Finn and Mike?"

"Yeah, I met them," Brittany said, sitting down next to her. "They were really nice. They told me that they were on the football team and that they were having a party for the beginning of the school year and that I should go. And then they told me that they would say hi to me when school started, isn't that nice of them? Do you know them?"

Santana snorted. "Yeah, I know them. They're kind of losers. At least, Finn is."

"Oh." Brittany looked down. "Well, they seemed nice and when I told them that you were my neighbor, they seemed to like you. They said that you were cool."

"I am cool," Santana replied confidently, but inside, she felt a little bad. At the end of last year, all of the Glee Clubbers had promised to support each other no matter what, but Santana hadn't thought they really meant it. She assumed that it was something they had said to appease Mr. Schue, and that by the time the new school year rolled around, they would be back to insulting each other and starting rumors about each other. But if Finn was saying that Santana was cool and Quinn was spending time with Rachel Berry...Santana shuddered to think what was going to happen to the social order at McKinley.

"I know that you're cool," Brittany said. "I told them you were going to be my best friend. But then they said that Quinn was your best friend, and then I said that Quinn was your girlfriend and that she couldn't be your best friend, too, but now I don't know. Can your best friend also be your girlfriend at the same time?"

"I'm not sure, Brittany," Santana said, smiling at the other girl's incessant chatter. "But whatever. I can have more than one best friend."

"Okay," Brittany said happily. Santana slowed down in front of Quinn's house right as the other girl came out of the front door. Santana had been picking Quinn up for school ever since she'd gotten her license, and they'd become very good at the routine. Quinn looked momentarily surprised to see Brittany in the front seat, but she simply turned and climbed into the back.

"Hey," she said to both of them as she got into the car.

"Hey babe," Santana replied.

"Hi Quinn," said Brittany. "What's up?"

"Not much," Quinn said. "Hurry up and drive before my mom comes out of the house," she said to Santana.

Santana hit the gas and sped down the street. "Another fight?" she asked. Quinn simply nodded and glanced at Brittany, and Santana decided not to press the matter while the other girl was in the car. Quinn seemed to relax as Santana turned the corner and left Quinn's street.

"Hey, Brittany," Quinn said, "does your bedroom have a window overlooking Santana's backyard?"

Santana almost slammed on the brakes in shock. She looked in the rearview mirror and glared at Quinn. Quinn looked stonily back. "Yeah, I think so," Brittany said. "I've been sleeping in the living room, though, because we just painted my room. Last night was the first night I slept in there."

"And did you...um..." Quinn looked at Santana for help, but Santana just rolled her eyes and looked at the road. "Were you in your room yesterday evening? Like, around dinner time?"

"No, I don't think so," Brittany said thoughtfully. If she thought Quinn's questions were odd, she didn't say anything about it. "I was watching T.V. with my sister when it was getting dark outside."

Quinn nodded. "Cool," she said. Brittany glanced out the window and Santana caught Quinn's eye. The blond gave her a quick wink, and Santana responded with a scowl.

"Wow," Brittany said as turned onto the street that McKinley was on and headed towards the parking lot. "There are so many people wearing red." She looked at Santana "Like you. You're matching with them. Was I supposed to match, too?"

"No, it's just the cheerleading uniforms," Santana said. "We have to wear them every day. And a lot of the jocks are wearing their letterman jackets."

"Oh, cool," Brittany replied. "There are cheerleading tryouts today, right? I'm so excited."

"Yeah." Santana forced a smile. She had no idea what Brittany's dancing abilities were, but she really hoped Coach Sylvester wouldn't reject her from the team. Coach had never in the history of the Cheerios let someone straight onto the Varsity team, and she hoped that Brittany wouldn't be disappointed that she was one rung lower than Santana. Santana wanted to tell her not to get her hopes up too high, but she couldn't bear to crush the enthusiastic look on Brittany's face. Instead she just said, "Do you know where you're supposed to go first?"

"I think I'm supposed to go to the principal's office to get my schedule," Brittany said. "Even though I thought you were only supposed to go there when you were bad. Does the principal live in his office? I always wondered that."

"He might," Santana said with a chuckle. "We'll show you how to get there, anyway." She parked and the three girls got out of the car. As they walked towards the front of the school, Brittany looked around in awe, and Santana couldn't help looking as well. The people around her looked different. First there were the freshman, a bunch of scared looking teenagers that Santana didn't recognize at all. Then there was the conspicuous absence of last year's graduating class, who had seemed so formidable and were now completely gone. Santana's own class seemed to have grown a lot bigger, at least in their presence. Everywhere she looked, she saw juniors, pulling up in their new cars, skateboarding down the stairs, tossing people in the dumpsters. Now that they were upperclassmen, everything felt different. "It's weird to be a junior," Quinn said, echoing Santana's thoughts exactly.

"Yeah," she replied as they got to the front doors and walked inside. "It's pretty weird." Feeling brave, she reached out and took Quinn's hand. She was never one for PDAs, even though the whole school knew that she and Quinn were dating, but somehow the knowledge that over half of the kids at McKinley were now younger than her made her feel more secure. Quinn intertwined their fingers as they reached Principal Figgins's office.

"This is where you're supposed to go," Quinn said when they got to the door. Brittany looked through the glass doors uncertainly. Figgins was at his desk, tapping away at his computer keyboard with his brow furrowed. Santana nodded at Brittany encouragingly.

"Okay. I guess I'll see you guys later," she said, pulling open the door to the office. Quinn and Santana watched her go in and then turned to head towards their lockers which were, conveniently, very close to one another.

"Do you think she'll know where to go?" Quinn asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I don't know. She seems sort of..." Quinn hesitated. "Dumb."

Santana frowned. She knew Brittany was weird but had honestly never thought of her before as being dumb. "I don't think she'll have a problem with it," she responded shortly.

Quinn shrugged. "Alright," she said. She let go of Santana's hand as they got to their lockers. They each opened them and began putting their new books and binders inside. "So I decided I'm going to try to get back on the Cheerios," Quinn informed her.

Santana merely nodded. She had been expecting that. Ever since Quinn had been kicked off the team and Santana had been made captain, the two of them had avoided talking about anything related to cheerleading. Santana wasn't sure what would be worse—if Quinn never got her spot back, or if she got it back at Santana's expense. One of the two things had to happen, and the inevitability of this fact had lingered over their relationship, constantly popping up when one of the two went to the gym or chose to forgo another ice cream with the intention of being in shape for the upcoming season. Santana loved Quinn and wanted her to be happy, but at the same time...

"Are you nervous?" she asked Quinn.

Quinn shrugged. "I sort of have a plan," she said. "And I've been working out all summer. The only way I'll get rejected is if she's still pissed about Babygate and if she is," Quinn shrugged, "there's really nothing I can do."

Santana walked over to Quinn and wrapped her in a tight hug. "If she doesn't want you, it's her loss."

"You know you're just saying that," Quinn responded. "You know how much this means to me. To _us_. Cheerleading is, like, the one thing that we've done right in our lives. It's what keeps us on top at this school. It's what keeps us out of the dumpster. It's what keeps people from calling us dykes every day."

Santana pulled away from Quinn and looked at her sadly. They'd been through so much together. But sometimes she wondered if the problem in their relationship was that they were too similar. They both needed so much validation from others to feel good about themselves. When they had to put themselves out there as Glee Club geeks, or as lesbians, or as anything considered 'uncool,' they turned to each other for encouragement—but the encouragement never came. Santana knew that Quinn needed someone to tell her that it was okay if she couldn't be a cheerleader, but she didn't think that she could be the person to do that. Furthermore, she knew that Quinn could not be that person for her. As she thought about this conundrum, her eyes wandered down the hallway to Brittany, who had emerged from Principal Figgins's office. She was deep in conversation with Becky Jackson, the Cheerio with Down's Syndrome whom Santana had only spoken with once. Brittany didn't seem to notice that other people in the hallway gave Becky a wide berth or seemed to be uncomfortable in her presence. She didn't even seem to notice Becky's disability at all. As Santana watched, Brittany's face broke into a smile and she put a hand on Becky's shoulder as the two girls turned to walk down the hall together.

Santana wasn't exactly sure what she was witnessing, but whatever it was, she longed for it.


	5. Chapter 5

Quinn walked into her first period class—English—and scanned the room anxiously, looking for someone to sit with. Unfortunately, she and Santana only had one class together besides Glee, and she had sort of lost all of her friends the year before when her pregnancy hormones had caused her to bitch out everyone in sight. Eyeing the room, she spotted two Cheerios in the back row that she used to know and took a fraction of a step towards them. However, they shot her a judgmental glare, so Quinn opted for the empty row of desks in the front row. This way, at least the teacher would be able to see her, though whether or not that would be a good thing remained to be seen.

Quinn pulled out her notebook and stared off into space. She had been a good student before sophomore year, but she'd lost most of her desire to learn since then. It had become abundantly clear to her that she was not going to get to leave Lima no matter how hard she tried, and she didn't really see the value in most of the things that she was learning, anyway. Quinn decided to practice looking like she was paying attention without actually paying attention, and as a result, she did not notice the person who came to sit down in the seat next to her.

"Quinn," Rachel said, waving a hand in front of the blond's face. "Are you okay?"

"What?" Quinn turned so quickly that her neck snapped. "Oh. Hey Rach. Sorry, I was zoning out."

"Clearly," Rachel said with a laugh. She sat down next to Quinn and pulled out a brand new binder and notebook, both with her name scrawled in cursive across the front. "Late night?"

"Not really," Quinn admitted. "School just fails to intellectually stimulate me, I guess."

"In school's defense, the first class of the year hasn't actually started yet," Rachel pointed out. "Still, I see the validity of your statement. I don't suppose you've noticed that we've been placed in the class of the most boring teacher at this school?"

"Wait, really?" Quinn looked down at her schedule. "Dammit. I hate Mr. Davis." She looked up at the ceiling. "Why?" she moaned dramatically.

"I was wondering why you chose to sit in the front row," Rachel said. "Our more astute classmates chose to sit in the back where they could fall asleep without detection."

"Damn," Quinn muttered, looking hopefully behind her only to find that all the seats had been filled. She looked back at Rachel. "Why did you come up here, then? Am I really that enticing?" She smiled teasingly and saw Rachel blush.

"Actually, I...I prefer to sit in the front row. I find that it's more conducive to learning. And I am more likely to be called upon in class discussion," Rachel said.

Quinn laughed. "I can only imagine how much you like class discussions."

"I like _participating _in class discussions," Rachel corrected. "The discussions themselves, however, are not always very enthralling."

"'Not always'? How about 'never'?" Quinn asked. At that moment, their teacher, Mr. Davis entered the classroom.

"Good morning," he said. "Since this is the first class of the year, I thought we would go around the circle and all share what we found most personally interesting about the summer reading."

Quinn stifled a groan, as did, it seemed, the entire class. Mr. Davis announced that they were to start in the back, and Quinn shifted to become comfortable in her seat, knowing this was going to be incredibly boring. When the first person began to speak, Quinn felt a poke on the side of her hand. She turned to see Rachel tapping a piece of paper against her fingers. When Rachel saw that she had noticed, she turned away and pretended to listen to the student who was speaking. Quinn checked to make sure that Mr. Davis was not looking, and then unfolded the paper carefully.

_I thought it might be more productive for me to (for the first time, obviously) engage in this activity that you delinquent types refer to as "passing notes." What do you think?_

Quinn bit back a laugh at Rachel's continued use of formality, even in her writing. She picked up her pencil and wrote back.

_Delinquent types? I resent that. But if this will keep me awake, then sure._

She passed the note back and watched as Rachel's face lit up and she began to scribble furiously. Then she looked back at the student in the back row who was _still_ talking about her reaction to the book they'd read. But Quinn didn't really care that the girl was taking so long. She was beginning to think that this class might not be so terrible after all.

* * *

><p>Santana was standing in the lunch line, wondering where Quinn was, when she was surprised by a sudden presence behind her. "Boo," a voice whispered in her ear. Santana spun around in shock.<p>

"Brittany," she said breathlessly. "You scared me."

"Sorry," Brittany said with a grin. She grabbed a tray and stood next to Santana in line. "What's up?"

Santana shrugged. "Not much. This year started out more boring than I thought it would. How was your first day?"

"It was awesome!" Brittany said, and Santana was not at all surprised by her enthusiasm. "I met so many cool people...everyone here is so nice."

"Yeah, they're nice to _you_," Santana said before she could stop herself.

"What do you mean?" Brittany asked.

Santana sighed. "I mean, you're nice and happy and cute and stuff. People are nice to people like that."

"Oh," Brittany said with a giggle. "Cute?"

"Yeah, I guess," Santana groaned. "Whatever. Don't talk about it again."

"Okay," Brittany agreed. She grabbed a sandwich and put it on her tray. "Oh, guess what?" she said. "I was in the lunch line today, and Santana told me that I was cute."

"You're really irritating, you know that?" Santana said, turning away so Brittany couldn't see the smile that crept onto her face. "Like, seriously."

"I thought I was nice and happy and cute," Brittany reminded her. She leaned in and bumped Santana's shoulder with her own. "I'm just kidding. Where's Quinn?"

"She's...I don't know," Santana said, glancing around the cafeteria. "She'll be here eventually, I guess." They got their food and left the lunch line. Santana looked at Brittany awkwardly. "Um, do you want to sit with me?"

"Can we sit with my new friends, too?" Brittany asked hopefully. Santana shrugged. Lately, she and Quinn had been sitting alone most of the time, so she wasn't really in the position to protest.

"Sure, I guess," Santana said.

"Great," Brittany said, leading the way. Santana followed her to a table in the corner where Tina and Mike were sitting by themselves. "Santana, this is Tina and Mike. They're in my math class. They reminded me how to multiply," she said proudly. "And did you know that Mike likes to dance, just like me?" The three kids looked at each other awkwardly. They knew each other, of course, from Glee Club, but since they weren't really friends, they didn't want to say anything. So Santana decided to just let Brittany go on with the introduction.

"Hi," Santana said when Brittany was done. She sat down across from them and Brittany sat next to her. "So...how was your summer?" she asked the two kids in front of her.

"Well," Mike began, looking lovingly at Tina.

"It was great," Tina told Santana. "Mike and I kinda started going out."

"Oh," Santana said in surprise. She hadn't actually seen Tina and Mike speak once in Glee Club last year, but it wasn't entirely unexpected. After all, they were both Asian. "That's cute. What happened to Artie?"

Tina shrugged. "We just grew apart, I guess."

"Who's Artie?" Brittany asked in interest.

"The wheelchair kid," Santana said. "You won't miss him. He's easy to spot."

"I want to meet him!" Brittany exclaimed. "Is the wheelchair, like, attached to him? Like a robot or something?"

Tina and Mike looked at each other with their eyebrows raised. "I don't think so," Santana said gently. "I think he can get in and out. But you know what, you never know. He might be a robot. It would definitely explain a lot of things."

"_I _think he's a robot," Brittany said with finality. "Most people in wheelchairs are."

"Hey girlies," a voice came from behind them, and moments later, Quinn dropped her tray onto the table and sat down on Santana's other side. She looked across the table with some surprise. "Hey Tina, Mike," she said with a nod.

"Hey Quinn," they replied.

Quinn looked over at Santana. "Sorry I'm late," she said. "Mr. Roberts gave us a test on the first day and it took a super long time to finish."

"It's okay," Santana said. "Roberts is a douchebag."

Quinn leaned around Santana to look at Brittany. "How is your first day going? Do you hate it here yet?"

"No, I love it," Brittany said. "Everyone's so cool. Even though there are so many things to learn in all of the classes. Like, there are so many _books_. Sometimes I forget how to read," she admitted.

"I always thought reading was like riding a bike," Quinn said, cocking her head to the side. "You know, once you learn, you can't forget."

Brittany shrugged. "I wouldn't know. I forgot how to ride a bike."

"It's okay," Santana assured her. "Reading's not that hard, I'm sure you can pick it up again."

"I hope so," Brittany said with a nod. "Oh, hey, Santana. What's your schedule for the rest of the day? I want to see if we have any classes together!"

"Okay," Santana said, leaning over and reaching into her backpack for her schedule. Brittany got hers and flattened it out on the table. Santana checked the schedule with her own. "The only class we have together is English." She looked at Brittany and shrugged sadly. "Too bad."

"What class is this?" Brittany asked, pointing to a block of blank space.

"That's a free period," Santana said.

"Do the other periods cost money? I didn't bring any money." Brittany looked genuinely worried.

"No, they don't," Santana explained. "A free period just means you're free. You can do whatever you want. You don't have a class."

"Oh," Brittany said, nodding in understanding. "What class do you have during my free period?"

"Uh," Santana began awkwardly. She didn't answer immediately, so Brittany leaned forward and quickly snatched Santana's schedule out of her hands. "Hey!" Santana said, trying to get it back, but Brittany just laughed and held it up over Santana's head. She squinted upwards to read it.

"Glee Club?" she read slowly, her brow furrowed in confusion. "What is Glee Club?"

"It's nothing," Santana muttered, snatching her schedule back. She looked over at Quinn, who just shrugged and didn't say anything.

"Glee Club is cool," Tina said. "It's a choir. You should join. Mr. Schue lets anybody in."

"Mr. Shoe, as in shoes?" Brittany said uncertainly. "Wait, so will I have to sing? I get nervous singing. I only sing in the shower, or when my sister is doing karaoke on the Wii, only she says that I need to stop because it makes Lord Tubbington angry—Lord Tubbington is my cat, by the way."

"Yeah, you have to sing," Mike said, choosing wisely to ignore the second part of Brittany's statement, "but you don't have to be really good. I can barely sing but Mr. Schue lets me dance."

"I can dance in Glee Club?" Brittany asked, her eyes lighting up.

"Totally, it would be great to have another girl dancer," Mike said enthusiastically. Tina narrowed her eyes at him. "Not that you're not an _amazing _dancer, Tina," he said quickly. "I just mean that you could use some help with the choreography."

"I love to choreograph!" Brittany said. She looked at Quinn. "And yeah, I know what that word means."

Quinn's eyes widened. "I never said you didn't!"

"Okay so hold up," Brittany said, raising both her hands in front of her. "If I join Glee Club, I will get to dance and sing and I will have another class with Santana? Every day?"

Mike nodded. "That sounds about right."

Brittany grabbed Santana's hand under the table and looked at her with her eyes wide. "I am totally going to join Glee Club!" she said excitedly.

* * *

><p>Later that afternoon, Quinn stomach was in knots as she walked into the gym wearing her yoga pants and the most confident gaze that she could muster. She stood in front of the bleachers and faced Becky and Sue with a determined look on her face. "Hi, I'm Quinn Fabray, and I want to audition for the Cheerios," she said, knowing that Sue loved professionalism. She nodded towards the iPod speakers next to Sue and waited anxiously for the music for her dance routine to come on, bouncing on the balls of her feet as Sue continued to stare at her.<p>

"Music?" Becky asked Sue, reaching across the table to press play.

"No," Sue said, holding out a hand to stop her. "Q, what are you doing back here? I thought I made it clear last year that I didn't need the bad publicity. You're a liability as it is, what with you spending every afternoon in a club of losers taught by a registered sex offender."

"I'm not pregnant anymore, Coach Sylvester," Quinn said evenly, choosing to ignore the dig at Glee Club. "And I practiced all the routines over the summer. There's no reason you can't let me back."

"Well, the great thing about being in charge is that I don't need a reason," Sue said with a vindictive smirk. "Send in the next person on your way out."

"Wait," Quinn said. She knew that she had to remain calm, but it was hard to keep a note of desperation from entering her voice. "Coach..." she began, taking a deep breath. She had rehearsed this part of her audition last night and she knew she had to go through with it. "Does this have something to do with me being a lesbian?"

Sue's face paled. "It has nothing whatsoever to do with your sexual orientation," she said. "I don't care who you're getting down and dirty with on your free time. Quite frankly, I think it's a relief that there will never be another hybrid of you and some sweaty, pimply teenage boy walking this Earth again. I've already looked into filing a restraining order against your first bastard child. So unless Lopez gets you pregnant—which I wouldn't necessarily put past her—I support your lifestyle one-hundred percent." Her eyes were defiant, but Quinn could see the worry etched onto her face. She obviously didn't believe that Sue had a problem with gay people—but that wasn't really the point. As long as Sue _thought_ that Quinn felt discriminated against, Quinn had the Cheerios captain right where she wanted her.

"I still get the feeling that your refusal to take me back onto the Cheerios has something to do with me being gay," she said. "And I think I might go to Principal Figgins about it. You know, just in case." Quinn held her breath as Sue looked at her for a long moment. The tension in the room had reached an all-time high, and Becky looked back and forth between the two of them, her eyes wide.

Finally, Sue cleared her throat. "You can pick up your uniform from my office," she said quietly. "And you'll need to stay until four-thirty today for our first meeting."

Quinn smiled widely as she left the gym. She went straight to Sue's office and got her uniform. She knew she should probably wash it, first—she didn't know who it used to belong to, after all—but she couldn't resist changing into it right away. Donned in red and white for the first time in many months, and feeling more confident than she had in just as long, she wandered out into the hall to look for the person that she was slightly scared to see: Santana.

Surprisingly, her girlfriend was in the choir room, playing absentmindedly with the piano. Quinn stood in the doorway for about a minute, watching her. Santana played a few notes and then scribbled something into a notebook that lay open on the piano bench. Quinn knew that Santana wrote music but had so far never gotten to hear any of it. She tried to remain as quiet as she could, hoping she could catch some of what the other girl was working on, but after a moment, Santana turned to look at the clock and saw Quinn standing in the doorway. She closed her notebook quickly and gave Quinn a small smile. Quinn stepped into the room, showing off her uniform and watching nervously for Santana's reaction.

"You made it," Santana said with a grin. It looked genuine, and Quinn crossed the room in relief, wrapping the other girl into a hug. "How did you do it? Not that I doubted you, but you know how Coach Sylvester can be."

"I _may_ have blackmailed her a little," Quinn admitted, pulling away and biting her lip. "And played the gay card in the process."

"Nice," Santana said admiringly. "Manipulative Quinn is so hot." She leaned forward and kissed Quinn quickly. "I'm sure Sue was proud of you in her own twisted way. She'll probably make you captain again," she said, and her eyes flickered down to the floor momentarily. Quinn did not miss the disappointment that crossed Santana's face.

"I doubt it," Quinn said quickly. "She has a great captain already who managed not to get knocked up last year. I think you're going to be sticking around." She punched Santana's arm lightly. "Although _how_ you managed not to get pregnant remains a mystery to me."

Santana shrugged. "Just lucky, I guess," she said. "And speaking of getting lucky, we still have forty-five minutes until our meeting."

Quinn looked around the empty room and back to Santana with a shocked look on her face. "You can't possibly be suggesting..."

Santana shrugged. "No one is here. I already kicked Berry out after school and told her that if she came back, I would personally deport her to Israel. So I think we're pretty safe." She wrapped her arms around Quinn's waist and nuzzled the blond girl's neck. "Don't be boring," she murmured.

"San..." Quinn started to protest as Santana began sucking on her pulse point. "Oh, shit. Alright, make it quick, okay?"

Santana smirked. "You know how I do," she said.

* * *

><p>Quinn and Santana were barely late to the meeting, but since all the other Cheerios had been frightened into arriving early, they were still the last ones there. They walked into the gym hand in hand, giggling as Quinn tried to smooth out her hair. Coach Sylvester glared at both of them in quiet resignation. "Now that our captain has finally decided to join us, I guess we can start," she said as the two girls grew quiet and sat down on the bleachers with the rest of the cheerleaders. "Quinn is back on varsity, some of you might remember her as the girl who underwent a transformation into a white whale last year. Although if you don't recognize her without the ten extra pounds in her face, I completely understand." Santana frowned, but Quinn just shrugged it off. She had missed this so much, and the fact that she was once again being berated by Coach Sylvester was just another reminder that the world had finally gone back to normal. "And five girls moved up from J.V. to varsity this year, although for the life of me I can't remember their names, and honestly, I don't care. Santana Lopez is still your captain and if she can keep her hands to herself during an entire practice, I'll know we're off to a good start."<p>

Quinn looked around at all of her old teammates and the five new girls that she recognized from J.V. There were no new faces in the room, which didn't surprise Quinn—in all of Sue's years as coach, no one had ever made it straight onto Varsity without cheering on the J.V. team first. The girls who had moved up were looking at Quinn curiously, but they looked quickly away when they saw that she was looking back. Quinn was happy to see that people were still somewhat scared of her. Though she had wanted to be back on the Cheerios more than anything, she had been terrified at the same time that between the pregnancy thing and the gay thing, she had lost her reputation. But the intrigued yet intimidated looks that she was now receiving from everyone in the room proved to her that she was still on top, and she smiled smugly, leaning into Santana's side.

"Before we start doing some conditioning," Sue continued, "I need all of you to come to the gym tomorrow during lunch. Which will be a good thing for those of you who can't seem to keep yourselves away from the tater tots in the cafeteria." She looked at one girl in particular as she said that, and Quinn was glad she had worked extra hard over the summer to lose all of her baby weight. "I was unable to make a decision about one of the girls who auditioned today and I want her to perform tomorrow in front of everyone so we can all judge her shamelessly."

Quinn raised an eyebrow. Sue never liked other people to help her with the audition process, preferring to make judgments on her own so that she could be as harsh as she wanted to. "Who is she?" Quinn dared to ask.

Sue paused thoughtfully. "Brittany something or other, I think. I only remember her name because she chose to audition to a Britney Spears song, which I found to be a disgusting attempt at something resembling cute. Which reminds me: we do not do 'cute' on the Cheerios, is that clear? I think I forgot to mention it last year, and I just want everyone to take note."

"Coach Sylvester," Santana interrupted, raising her hand. She was chewing on her lip nervously and Quinn looked over at her questioningly. "I met Brittany and she's new here and she's really passionate about dancing. Can't you just let her on the team? I can—Quinn and I can help her with the routines if you need us to, I just think that you should let her on because being on the Cheerios is so important to her. It's like, all she's talked about for the last week." Santana looked at Sue apprehensively.

Sue just stared, and Quinn couldn't help being shocked as well. Seeing Santana stick up for someone was like seeing a dog walk on its hind legs, and everyone on the team knew it. Furthermore, no one had offered their unsolicited opinion in a Cheerios meeting, like, ever. Sue looked at Santana closely, and Quinn had the feeling that she was logging this moment in her memory bank to mull over at a later time, so she could analyze Santana's changed behavior frame-by-frame. Quinn couldn't blame her, as she herself was not quite sure what to make of it.

"It's not a question of letting her onto the team," Sue said finally, speaking slowly as she continued to look at Santana calculatingly. "I need you guys to decide whether or not she should be on Varsity."


	6. Chapter 6

Since Santana and Quinn had to stay later for a Cheerios meeting, Brittany had called her mom to get a ride home from school. "How did the audition go?" her mother asked as Brittany got into the car.

"I'm not sure," she replied, fastening her seatbelt. "The coach told me I had to go in tomorrow for another tryout in front of everyone."

"That's ridiculous, you're like the best dancer ever," Emily said from the backseat. "And you practiced that routine all week."

"I'm sure she'll let you on, honey," her mother said encouragingly. "Don't worry."

"I'm not worried," Brittany said, forcing a smile.

"How was your first day?" Mrs. Pierce asked. "Did you make friends?"

"It was awesome, I made so many friends." Brittany forgot about the Cheerios tryout as she smiled happily. "I met this guy named Jacob who totally likes ducks just as much as I do. And these two Asians who I thought were related but they're actually dating. Their names are Mike and Tina and Mike loves to dance just as much as I do. And then I also met this guy Finn, who was like, really big, and he's friends with Puck, who I met last week when I was at the mall with Santana and Quinn."

"Who is Quinn?" her mother asked.

"She also tried out for the Cheerios and she made it onto the team because she was on it before, but then she got pregnant and had to leave, but now that she's not pregnant anymore, she came back."

"Oh," Mrs. Pierce said. "She was pregnant so she's...okay..." She trailed off awkwardly.

"Mom?" Brittany asked. "Why are you being so weird?"

"Did she keep the baby? Does she, like, bring it to school?" Emily asked interestedly.

Brittany frowned. "I don't know. She wouldn't tell me the story, so I found out from Jacob. He knows everything about everyone. He also has a blog."

"I don't think it's appropriate to discuss other people's private lives, anyway," Mrs. Pierce said. "Emily, why don't you tell us about _your_ new friends?"

Emily talked for a little while, and Brittany zoned out as she looked out the window. She wanted to learn the layout of the city so that she could start driving herself instead of getting rides from her mom, but she had a tendency to get lost. And she also had difficulty with maps. She didn't understand how they seemed to help people so much. Instead, Brittany tried to remember landmarks, such as large trees or houses with white doors, but there were too many of each one and she became frustrated. She got excited when she finally saw a house that she recognized, but then she suddenly realized that it was her own.

As her mom parked, Emily got out of the car and went towards the door. Brittany made to follow her, but her mother said, "Wait." She took the keys out of the ignition and handed them to Emily. "Go inside," she told her younger daughter. "I need to talk to Brittany for a minute."

Emily looked confused, but she took the keys and left. Brittany sat worriedly in her seat, her seatbelt still on, wondering if she was about to get in trouble. Her mom looked at her for a moment before speaking. "Your new friend Santana," she began slowly. "Is she...um...is she gay?"

Brittany furrowed her brow. _This _is what her mom wanted to talk about? Why did she have to wait until her younger sister was gone? "Um, yeah," Brittany said.

Mrs. Pierce nodded. She still seemed uncomfortable, for some reason, and Brittany wondered what else her mother could possibly have to say. "Where were you yesterday evening?" she asked finally.

"Watching T.V. with Emily," Brittany said slowly. "Mom, are you going crazy and forgetting things again? Do you want to take some of my ADD medication?"

"No, honey, I'm fine," her mother said, shaking her head quickly. "We can go inside now."

"Um, alright." Brittany got out of the car and grabbed her backpack, heading for the house. When she got inside, she went straight up to her new room, which still smelled like paint. It made Brittany feel dizzy, but in a good way. She leaned her head against the window and looked down at Santana's pool. She wished she had a pool in her own backyard. Maybe when Santana got home, they could go swimming... She looked at the clock and sighed. "Stupid Cheerios meeting," she said to herself.

They hadn't gotten any homework on the first day, so Brittany opened her laptop and decided to go on Facebook. She had received several more friend requests already from people she had met today, and she accepted all of them happily, adding to her growing list of new Facebook friends from Lima. She checked her notifications next, and was surprised to see that Puck had sent her a private message. She opened it.

**Noah Puckerman **to **Brittany Pierce**

**Subject: **Party?

Hey my friend Azimio is having a party this Friday and I was wondering if you wanted to come with me. Can I pick you up around 9?

Brittany's stomach flipped as she read the message. Was Puck asking her out? She wasn't sure what to make of it, since she barely knew him, but he _was_ really hot. She wasn't sure if he meant that it was a date, though. She would have to ask Santana or Quinn about it later. Brittany wrote back that she was free on Friday and that she was super excited. And she threw the winky face in, too. Emily had told her that it was flirty. Then she scrolled through her other notifications, mostly wall posts from her friends that she'd had before she moved. When she'd exhausted all of Facebook's entertainment offerings, she flopped down on her bed and tried to fall asleep.

* * *

><p>When Mr. Pierce came home, he found his wife sitting in the living room anxiously. "What's wrong?" he asked.<p>

She looked up at him. "It's that...thing I told you yesterday. It's still bothering me."

Mr. Pierce lowered his voice. "You mean seeing that Santana girl kissing another girl in her pool? I don't know why that should bother you. I don't care about the sexual orientation of Brittany's friends."

"I know but what if she and Brittany are more than friends?" Mrs. Pierce asked anxiously. "I just...I mean I don't have a problem with it, necessarily, I just don't know what we should do if she..."

Mr. Pierce sighed and sat down next to his wife. "If the other girl in the pool had been Brittany, you would know. You would have recognized your own daughter."

Mrs. Pierce shook her head. "It was getting dark and they were far away...I only saw them for an instant. I didn't want them to see me looking."

"Well did you ask Brittany about it? You know how she is, she's very open. I'm sure she would tell you whatever you wanted to know."

"I felt too uncomfortable," Mrs. Pierce said with a shrug. "I asked her about her friends. I assumed that Santana would have introduced Brittany to her girlfriend if she had one, but the only girls Brittany said she met both had boyfriends...one of them was pregnant last year, in fact." She looked at Mr. Pierce pointedly. "I'm not sure how I feel about that, either."

"Honey, you need to relax," he said firmly. "Brittany has always had such good judgment. Quite frankly, if she's friends with a girl who got pregnant or a girl who's a lesbian, I don't think that we should be making a big deal about it. I'm sure they're great kids and trust Brittany completely."

"But what if that was her in the pool yesterday? Then what should we do?"

"Our daughter is straight," Mr. Pierce reminded her. "She's had boyfriends and we know she's interested in boys, and just because she hangs out with gay people does not mean that she's gay. And until we have a solid reason to think that she's...having a relationship with Santana, we can't afford to lose her trust by bombarding her with questions."

"You're probably right," Mrs. Pierce said with a sigh. "I should go get dinner started."

"I'll help," Mr. Pierce said, getting up from the couch and following his wife into the kitchen.

* * *

><p>"So what was that whole outburst in Cheerios about?" Quinn asked Santana later that night. The two of them were lying on Santana's bed, but since her bedroom door was open and Mrs. Lopez had a tendency to swoop in every five minutes, they couldn't do anything except talk. Which was not one of Santana's favorite activities.<p>

"Outburst?" Santana repeated, mulling over Quinn's question in her mind. "Isn't that a little dramatic?"

"Alright fine, but it _was_ out of character for you to stand up for Brittany like that."

"I don't know," Santana said, and it was the truth. She hadn't really thought about what she was going to say before she said it. "I just knew that it meant a lot to her to be on the Cheerios and I knew she'd be upset...and she's like the nicest person I know and she doesn't deserve that."

Quinn bit her lip. "You talk about her like you've known her forever. It's been a week, Santana."

"I know," Santana said. That thought had actually crossed her mind before. Aside from one lunch, one trip to the mall, and one day at school, this girl was a complete stranger to her, and yet Santana already felt like she knew Brittany like an old friend. She couldn't explain it exactly, but she somehow knew without a doubt that being cut from the Cheerios would hurt Brittany, and she wanted to make sure that didn't happen.

"Do you have a crush on her?" Quinn blurted out suddenly.

"What?" Santana was completely taken aback. "Um, aren't you forgetting about someone, Quinn? I'll give you a hint: look in the mirror."

"People can be dating someone and still have a crush on someone else," Quinn countered. "It would make sense, you know. I've never seen you be so nice to someone before."

"Is it really that hard to believe that I can just be friends with someone?" Santana asked.

Quinn shrugged. "Maybe. I mean, your best friend is Puck and you used to sleep with him. Platonic relationships aren't exactly your style." The words were true, but they still hurt, and Santana didn't say anything for several moments. Quinn seemed to sense her pain because she scooted over on the bed and draped an arm over Santana's waist. "I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't mean that. I just need to know that you love me."

"Of course I love you," Santana said. "It's totally different. Brittany is like the first person I've ever really connected with. Besides you, of course. I don't know, I can't really explain it..." Santana frowned.

"San, that doesn't really sound like nothing," Quinn said. "What exactly is going on?"

"Nothing," Santana replied. "Quinn, I promise you. You're the only one I want to be with, you know that, right?"

"I know," Quinn said. She placed a kiss on Santana's cheek. "I just...we've been friends since kindergarten and you're the only person in the world that I feel like I can really be myself around. I need you."

"I need you, too, Q," Santana said, reaching over to tangle her fingers in Quinn's hair.

* * *

><p>Glee Club met during first period the next day. Brittany, Santana, and Quinn carpooled again, but as they walked into the school together, Santana hung back.<p>

"I'll meet you guys in Glee, my weed dealer is here," she said. Quinn raised her eyebrows. "I'm kidding. I'm just going to the bathroom."

"Um, alright," Quinn said, watching as her girlfriend doubled back and went around the corner. "The sad thing is, I don't even know if she was serious or not," Quinn said, more to herself than Brittany.

"So I heard that you and Puck had a baby together," Brittany said abruptly.

"What?" Quinn looked up in surprise. She wasn't necessarily opposed to Brittany knowing that little tidbit about her, but she hadn't expected that the news would travel so fast. Clearly, her pregnancy was still hot gossip at McKinley. "Um, yeah, we did, but we gave her up for adoption." Talking about Beth was still slightly painful, and she hoped Brittany wouldn't ask anything else.

"My mom said that I shouldn't ask people about their private business so I just have a question about Puck," Brittany said.

"Uh, okay," Quinn said, surprised at how candidly Brittany had stated that. "What is it?"

"Well he sent me a Facebook message about this party on Friday and he wants to pick me up at nine to take me there. So is that, like, a date?"

Quinn thought for a moment. "To be honest, I'm not really sure. Puck is a complicated guy. But it sounds like he's interested. Do you want it to be a date?"

"I don't know," Brittany said. She smiled and blushed. "He's cute."

Quinn nodded. "He definitely is," she said. Whatever her past with Puck, there was no denying that fact. "Well, I think you should go for it. He has a bit of a reputation but he's not a bad guy."

"So it would be, like, okay with you?" Brittany looked anxious. "I was going to ask Santana about Puck but then I remembered that you used to be in a relationship with him and I wanted to make sure..."

"Brittany," Quinn interrupted. "Does it look like I still want Puck?" She laughed. "He's not exactly my type. And we were never really in a relationship at any point so you're free to do whatever you want."

Brittany smiled with relief. "Okay," she said happily. "Good. Then will you help me decide what to wear?"

"Of course," Quinn told her. "Oh, and by the way, he dated Santana, too. But they totally got past it and they're friends now, so I know she won't have a problem with it. I just thought I'd give you the heads up, in case he says anything about it."

"Oh," Brittany said. Her face seemed to fall slightly. "Okay."

"She's not going to be mad," Quinn said quickly.

Brittany nodded. "Alright."

They reached the choir room and Quinn led the way inside. Only a few people had arrived, and predictably, Rachel was one of them. Finn and Mercedes were in the front row and Rachel sat behind them, shooting dirty looks at the back of Finn's head. Once she saw Quinn, however, her face lit up and she motioned to an empty seat beside her. With a smile, Quinn led Brittany over to join Rachel.

"This is Brittany," Quinn said as she sat down. "She wants to join Glee Club."

"How interesting," Rachel said, raising her eyebrows at the other girl. "Do you sing a lot?"

"Um, kind of," Brittany replied. "I mostly like to dance."

"Oh, good," Rachel said, and Quinn could tell that the other girl was relieved. "Well, I'm glad you decided to join. My solos are breathtaking, obviously, but they could definitely use some new moves in the background. As long as you don't overshadow me." Brittany smiled awkwardly, unsure as to whether or not Rachel was joking. Quinn looked from one girl to the other and stifled a laugh.

"Yeah alright, shut your trap, Rachel," Mercedes said, turning around in her seat. She looked at Brittany. "I'm Mercedes. And let me just say that it is a _pleasure_ to have you in Glee Club." She shot Rachel a dirty look. "We always need new faces."

"Thanks," Brittany said, smiling at Mercedes. The door opened and Mike, Tina, and Puck walked in. Finn stood to greet them and Quinn leaned over to whisper in Rachel's ear.

"Off to a good start, I see," she said teasingly.

Rachel pouted. "I was just trying to welcome her. Although I will admit that sometimes my attempts at being friendly come off as more arrogant than they should. I assure you that it was unintentional."

"Yeah, well, don't worry," Quinn promised her. "Brittany's not the type to hold a grudge."

Artie and Santana walked into the room, followed closely by Kurt and a blond boy that Quinn had never seen before. "This is Sam Evans," Kurt announced to everyone. "He wants to join Glee Club."

Rachel sighed audibly next to Quinn, and Quinn turned to her with one eyebrow raised. "At least he's a boy," Rachel said with a shrug. "Besides, I need someone to do the other half of my duets now that Finn is no longer an option."

Quinn paused for a moment. "You know, you _did _promise to give me at least one solo this year. I guess a duet could count if it would be easier for you."

Rachel glanced over at Santana, who had paused on her way to her seat to talk to Tina. "You want to do a duet with me?" she asked, looking back at Quinn.

Quinn shrugged. "I don't know. You said you needed someone. I mean, what if this Sam kid sucks? What if you guys don't have 'vocal chemistry'?" She put air quotes around the phrase, causing Rachel to giggle.

"Don't make fun of my terminology," she said. "And I suppose I have always admired your voice, and if I'm being honest, I have considered the harmonic possibilities that a, dare I say it, Faberry duet would open up for us."

"Did you just say 'Faberry'?" Quinn asked. "You have got to be kidding me."

"Sorry," Rachel said, blushing furiously. "I just thought it would be a convenient mash-up of our names. And I've heard it used before...by Jacob." Rachel stared at the floor. It was obvious that she was extremely uncomfortable.

"Don't worry about it," Quinn assured her. "I just didn't realize that we had our own couple name, now. This relationship is progressing pretty fast." She smiled to show that she was only teasing, but Rachel did not return the gesture, and Quinn saw her look again at Santana, who was now walking towards them. Santana pulled a chair from the back row and placed it between Quinn and Brittany, sitting closer to the former and draping an arm over her shoulders.

"Hey baby, RuPaul," Santana said, nodding at both Quinn and Rachel in turn.

"Hi Santana," Rachel said quietly.

"What were you guys talking about?" Santana asked. "I heard something about a relationship. Is it Wheezy? Did she finally get herself a man?"

Mercedes, who was sitting in front of Rachel, turned around to give Santana a glare, which the other girl ignored. "No, actually, we were just discussing duet possibilities for the coming season," Rachel said. She was shifting nervously in her seat and seemed upset at Santana's sudden appearance. Quinn raised an eyebrow, but Santana did not seem to notice anything was wrong.

"Oh. Cool. Quinn, we should do a duet," Santana said, leaning over to place her head on Quinn's shoulder. Rachel jumped up from her chair so fast that the force pushed it back several inches. She opened and closed her mouth several times.

"Whats wrong?" Quinn asked in concern.

"I just remembered I...I have to talk to Mike about a possible new dance number," she said. "I'll talk to you guys later." She darted across the room and took a seat behind Mike and Tina, leaning forward to speak with both of them. Quinn turned back to Santana with surprise still etched on her face.

"That was weird," she said.

"She's such a freak," Santana replied. "I don't think she stops thinking about Glee Club, like, ever."

"I think it's sort of cool," Quinn said, more to herself than to Santana. "She's just passionate."

"Yeah, whatever, as long as her passion doesn't involve extra rehearsals, I'm okay with it." Mr. Schuester walked into the room and their conversation was cut off. As everyone quieted down, Quinn glanced over at Rachel to see that the other girl was watching her. They locked eyes for a moment and Quinn could swear she saw jealousy there, but before she could confirm it, Rachel was facing forward again, raising her hand to tell Mr. Schuester something. Quinn sighed into Santana's embrace, deciding to ignore the other girl for now. Life was complicated enough without having to worry about her non-relationship with Rachel Berry.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I have an important note for people who care about timeline, but otherwise, you can skip this since it's kind of long (sorry!). So the first season of Glee had this really long break in the middle of it and then ended in June with Regionals, but in the second season, Regionals was in March and Nationals was in May. This second timeline sounds about right to me because obviously, Regionals would not have been at the end of the school year in the first season (since there was still a Nationals, New Directions just didn't get to go). So I'm going to say that in the first season, Regionals also took place in March, and I'll blame the June airdate on the fact that there was a five month gap between the 13th and 14th episodes of the show (which was not reflected in the plot, so we are supposed to assume that 14 picks up right where 13 left off: basically, we are supposed to pretend the hiatus didn't happen). I've put in a bit of backstory in this chapter and I'm going to refer to Regionals as having been at the end of March, and you readers will just go with it because you guys are all kinds of awesome.**

* * *

><p>As everyone went to the cafeteria at noon, Santana and Quinn made their way in the other direction, towards the gym. They were going to watch Brittany's tryout for the Cheerios, and for some reason, Santana was almost as nervous as if it had been her Cheerios membership on the line instead of Brittany's. Sure, it was only a question of J.V. or Varsity, not of J.V. or nothing at all, but it was still frightening to think that Brittany was going to have to dance in front of a bunch of Varsity girls that she barely knew. Santana was somewhat angry with Sue for arranging this little trial-by-jury. It wasn't exactly fair to the girl who had moved into town a week and a half ago.<p>

"Brittany must be good, Sue's never moved anyone straight to Varsity before," Quinn said as they approached the gym.

"Yeah, she must be," Santana replied. They walked inside to see most of the team already there, sitting on the bleachers. Brittany was easy to spot in the first row, sitting at a slight distance from the other girls and being the only one not wearing a red McKinley high uniform. She looked nervous, but when she saw Santana and Quinn, her face lit up and she waved happily. Santana waved back and led Quinn over to sit behind her.

Brittany turned around to look at them. "I'm scared," she whispered.

"Whatever you do, don't let Coach Sylvester know that," Quinn informed her. "She likes people who are confident so just...pretend that you're not nervous even if you are."

"You'll be great," Santana added. "Just relax."

"Alright, everyone, shut up," Sue called out through her megaphone as she entered the gym and took a seat on the other end of the front row. Becky Jackson took a seat next to her, holding a clipboard and a pen. "Welcome to the first ever Tryout That Allows for Minimal Input from the Rest of the Squad. Our victim today is named Brittany Pierce."

Brittany bit her lip, and Santana reached forward and patted her shoulder lightly. Reassured by the gesture, Brittany stood and walked onto the court, turning to face everyone. "Uh, hi," she said awkwardly. "I'm Brittany."

"We know," Coach Sylvester said. "Let's hurry this up, I have an root canal appointment that I would rather be at right now."

"Oh, okay," Brittany said, looking slightly alarmed. She glanced over at Becky, who was managing the iPod speakers. "Um, hit it?" She bounced on the balls of her feet as Becky reached over to press play.

When the music started, Brittany sprang into action. All traces of nervousness were gone as she began to dance, and Santana was instantly mesmerized. The song Brittany had chosen was 'Slave 4 U' by Britney Spears, and she seemed to have mixed choreography from the music video with her own moves to showcase both her dancing and gymnastics abilities. It was absolutely flawless. Without realizing it, Santana began to lean forward in her seat. Not only was she completely blown away by Brittany's talent, but she also did not think she had ever been so attracted to someone in her life. The muscles in Brittany's arms and legs became more defined as she moved effortlessly from one maneuver to the next. Her short t-shirt rode up significantly when she lifted her arms above her head, and Santana's mouth watered at the toned abs that went on display. She was unbelievably and embarrassingly turned on by Brittany in that moment, and when she felt Quinn shift in her seat, bringing her a fraction of an inch closer to Santana, Santana had to make a conscious effort to breathe normally so that her girlfriend wouldn't notice the state she was in. Brittany's routine finished after just three minutes, right as the other girl landed a perfect back handspring and dropped immediately into the splits. When the music stopped, the confident look disappeared from Brittany's face for the first time, and she looked at all of the girls with apprehension.

"Wow," Quinn breathed, and Santana merely nodded, unable to speak. Quinn began to clap, and the other girls followed suit. Santana forced herself to regain her composure and join the applause.

Sue lifted her megaphone to her mouth. "Once again, I am moderately impressed," she announced as the applause immediately died down. "Now, please wait outside while we deliberate."

Brittany got up from the floor and began to walk towards the door to the gym, glancing at Santana and Quinn as she went. Quinn gave her a thumbs up, and Santana managed an encouraging smile as the blond exited the room. Sue turned towards the assembled cheerleaders. "Well?" she asked.

No one said anything. It was clear that they were worried that Sue would disagree with whatever opinion they gave, so they didn't want to speak. Quinn rolled her eyes at Santana and said bravely, "I thought she was great."

"Me too," Santana said quickly. "I think she has what our team needs. She should be on Varsity."

There was a general murmur of assent as everyone now felt free to share their opinions. Or rather, they now felt free to agree with Quinn and Santana. Santana was pretty sure that even if anyone didn't want Brittany on the team, there was no way they were going to disagree with their captain. Santana smiled smugly as Sue said, "Well, if it's unanimous, I suppose I should let her on. But no more Britney Spears. That delicious harpie makes me want to take a carrot skinner to my eyeball. Q, go tell her to come back in."

As Quinn got up to get Brittany, Santana tried to stop herself from revisiting Brittany's dancing in her head. She was thrilled that Brittany was going to be joining the team, but if watching the other girl dance was going to become a daily occurrence...she was going to have to learn how to control herself.

* * *

><p>"I'm so frustrated," Santana groaned as she walked into her house after school. Christian looked up from the living room couch.<p>

"Why?" he asked.

"Nothing," she muttered, sitting down next to him. She groaned and put her head into her hands. "What is wrong with me?" she moaned.

"Look, if you're not going to talk about it, then shut up," Christian said, turning back to look at the T.V. He was watching some cop show, and Santana reached for the remote to try to change the channel. Christian got to it first and held it out of her reach. "And you can't have the remote, either, unless you spill."

"Fine," Santana said with resignation. "But you have to promise not to tell anyone about it. I need your advice."

"Alright." Christian put down the remote and pulled his legs up onto the couch, turning to face her. "Let's have a girl talk," he said in his valley-girl voice.

"Yeah, if you talk like that, I'm not going to tell you," Santana said, imitating Christian's position. She sighed. "Brittany tried out for the Cheerios today."

"Did she make it?" Christian asked.

"Yeah. She made it onto Varsity. Which, like, has never happened before. She's really good, she could probably dance professionally if she wanted to."

"Okay," Christian said. "So what's the problem? Is she going to take your place or something?"

"No, it's not that," Santana said quickly. "It's like...okay, this is embarrassing."

Christian laughed. "What is it? You're blushing. You never blush."

"Shut up," Santana said, glaring at him. "I just...alright...I got really turned on watching her dance."

There was a pause as Christian just looked at her for a while. There was an amused look in his eyes, but he seemed to be attempting to keep a straight face for her benefit. "Okay," he said finally. "Since you're not a guy—I think—then I know you didn't have any awkward stuff happening down there that people could see, so what exactly is the problem?"

"I have a girlfriend!" Santana said. "I shouldn't be getting turned on by stuff like that. She was just dancing...God." Santana put her head in her hands and moaned as she thought about Brittany's dancing for the hundredth time that day. "_Ay, Dios, m__á__teme ahora_."

"Don't be so dramatic," Christian said. "There's nothing wrong with checking out other girls once in a while. It's healthy."

"Yeah, well, you don't exactly have the best track record when it comes to relationships," Santana pointed out. "So excuse me if I don't want to take your advice."

"Fuck you," Christian said, picking up a pillow from the side of the couch and hitting Santana on the head with it.

"I finally stopped thinking about it in sixth period," Santana said, ignoring Christian's attack completely. "And then she got her uniform after school and she put it on and sent me into a relapse."

Christian looked at her sympathetically. "It's okay," he said. "You'll get used to it and then you won't notice it anymore. Besides, Quinn is super hot, look at her instead."

"I guess," Santana muttered, still feeling angry.

"I mean, unless you like her or something. Brittany, I mean."

"No," Santana said quickly. "Seriously, why does everyone think I like her?"

"I don't know," Christian said with a shrug. "You just always hate everyone, so when you like someone the normal amount, we all assume you're falling in love." He grinned at her. "Don't worry about it. We know you and Quinn are happy."

"Good," Santana replied shortly. "Well then, I'm leaving now. People always say you should talk to your siblings but this was just sort of weird."

"Yeah, well, you suck anyway," Christian said, looking back at the T.V. "Have a nice life."

"Oh, I will," Santana said as she got up to leave. At that moment, however, they were both distracted by the sound of a key in the front door, and their mother came into the room a moment later.

"Good, I'm glad you two are here," she said, setting her purse down. "I ran into Mrs. Pierce outside and I told her that her family should come over for dinner tonight."

All of the blood drained out of Santana's face. Christian began to laugh. He turned off the T.V. and doubled over on the couch, trying to hide his face in his hands. Santana, however, found nothing amusing about the situation. "Mom..." she began.

"What's so funny?" her mother snapped. "Christian, what's going on?"

"Nothing, mama," Christian gasped, trying to control himself.

"Well if you're not going to tell me about it, then you need to stop laughing. That's a rule. And I need you both to help me start dinner and clean the house, so you better get up off the couch."

"Wait, Mom, are you sure tonight is the best time? I have homework," Santana protested. She could _not_ see Brittany again today. It was too much for her to handle.

"If you have homework then you can bring it down to the kitchen table and do it while I supervise," her mother said. "We still have a few hours."

Santana groaned. "Nevermind. I don't have homework. I just don't want to have to entertain people..." She struggled for an excuse, but she knew that it was futile. Once her mother got these sort of ideas into her head, they didn't leave quickly.

Her mother just looked at her. "Santana, I don't care what you want," she said. "Now go and clean your room and come back downstairs when you're done. Christian, clean up the living room, it looks like you've been living here for days. Where is Marco?" Mrs. Lopez left the room quickly to search for her youngest child. Santana glared at her retreating form.

"_Puta_," she muttered once her mom was out of earshot.

"Well," Christian said, stretching his arms behind his back. "We better get working. I wouldn't want _Brittany_ to think that we're slobs or something, you know?"

"Shut up, dick," Santana said, heading for the stairs.

* * *

><p>Three hours later, Santana found herself sitting between Brittany and Marco at the Lopez's formal dining table, which they only ever used when they had company. Christian sat across from the two girls, between his parents, shooting a smirk at Santana every time she looked up. She longed to retaliate, but her mother was watching her like a hawk, certain that somehow her rowdy daughter was going to embarrass them in some way. So Santana sat in quiet resignation, trying to ignore how close Brittany was sitting to her and the glances that the other girl would occasionally send her way. In fact, she had been ignoring Brittany throughout most of the night, and the other girl seemed to have picked up on it. Brittany seemed slightly hurt, and Santana felt awful about it, but so far she hadn't had any moments of embarrassing arousal, so really, it was for the best.<p>

"So, Brittany," Christian said as soon as there was a lull in the conversation. Santana tried to shut him up with her eyes, but he merely smiled at her and continued. "Santana told me that you just made it onto the Varsity Cheerios team."

"Yeah," Brittany said, blushing slightly. "It was really nice of them to let me on."

"Don't be modest, honey," her mother said from across the table. "You worked hard for that."

"You must be very taleneted," Mrs. Lopez said. "Coach Sylvester can be pretty strict. I can't tell you how many times Santana has come home crying because of something that happened-"

"Mom!" Santana exclaimed.

"Sorry, mija, I just wanted to congratulate Brittany on her performance! Don't worry about her," she said to Brittany. "Santana likes to pretend she's tougher than she actually is."

"Shut up," Santana said through gritted teeth. She was furious. And it was clear that the worst was yet to come when Christian opened his mouth again.

"Santana said your routine was really good," he said, biting back a smile. "She really enjoyed it."

"Really?" Brittany looked over at Santana hopefully. Santana forced a smile in return. "Thanks. I was really nervous." She placed a hand onto Santana's thigh, causing the other girl to blush deeply. The memories of the dance routine were coming back and she forced them out of her head...only to have them replaced by memories of the Cheerios uniform. Shit. Now Brittany was doing the routine _in_ the Cheerios uniform. Santana crossed her legs so that Brittany's hand would slide off of her skin. Then she took a large gulp of water. Across the table, Christian watched her with a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Are you okay, Santana?" her father asked. "You look a little flushed."

"I'm fine, it's just hot," Santana said quickly. She immediately regretted her choice of words as Christian snorted with laughter. Everyone glanced over at him, and he quickly began shoveling food into his mouth. Santana pushed her own plate a few inches away from her. She needed this dinner to be over _now_.

"If you kids are done, you can leave," Mrs. Lopez said. "We'll take care of the dishes. You can show Emily and Brittany around the house."

"Are you sure you don't need help with the dishes, Mom?" Santana asked. She desperately did not want to be alone with Brittany right now. However, her mom just raised an eyebrow in response.

"Stop acting so suspicious," her mother said. "Get out of here."

"Fine." Santana took her napkin off of her lap and put it on the table. Then she got up from her chair. Brittany, Emily, and Marco followed suit. Santana led the group into the living room. "Um, do you want to watch T.V. or something?"

"I wanna play Mario Kart," Marco said. "Can we turn on the Wii?"

Santana looked around the room. Brittany looked back at her with a shrug. "I like Mario Kart," Emily said. "Let's play."

"Yay!" Marco went over to the Wii to put in the disc. He picked up one of the controllers and handed it to Emily. Santana moved to sit on the edge of the couch, but before she could, Brittany took her hand.

"Can I see your room?" she asked. The gesture was mildly flirtatious, but the way that Brittany said it was completely innocent. However, that did not stop Santana's mind from heading straight to the gutter.

"Uh, sure," she said, not knowing what else to say. She took her hand out of Brittany's grasp and led her out of the living room, towards the stairs. Emily and Marco had just started their game and barely noticed the two girls as they left. "Here it is," Santana said when they reached her door. "It's sort of dark...not really like yours."

"I like it," Brittany said, going inside. She wandered over to the desk and looked at the collage of pictures that Santana had put up over the summer while she had been bored. There were pictures of her and her family from various vacations, pictures of her and Quinn in elementary school, and lots of pictures from the Cheerios. There was also a one picture of the Glee Club that Finn's mom had taken of all of them right before they performed at Regionals. Santana hadn't put it up for a while because of the painful memories it brought back—Quinn's baby, coming in last place, the uncontrollable sobbing on the way home—but eventually she had calmed down enough to document the experience. Brittany went straight to the picture and looked at it for a long time.

"I don't know why I have that up," Santana lied. "It's not that cool. I just ran out of Cheerios pictures and I needed to fill that space."

"You look so happy," Brittany said, her fingers ghosting over the image of Santana's face. Her eyes traveled over the other pictures in the collage, the ones from her childhood. "You've been friends with Quinn for a long time," she noted.

"Since kindergarten," Santana said with a nod. She sat down on the edge of her bed and watched as Brittany continued to examine her photos.

"When did you start dating?" Brittany asked. She came and sat down beside Santana.

Santana counted the months on her fingers. "The end of April, I think," she said. "It was about a month after Regionals. After she had her baby, too."

"How did it happen?"

Santana had never really been asked how her relationship with Quinn had started before. Her parents, though supportive, hadn't exactly wanted to hear the details. But Santana found that she sort of wanted to be able to tell someone about it, and Brittany was looking at her with inquisitive eyes, so she decided to open up. "Well, I realized I wasn't attracted to guys towards the beginning of sophomore year. I was sort of dating Puck but I wasn't that into him and it was mostly physical anyway. And then Quinn got pregnant with his baby so we sort of fought for a while about it. Actually, we basically stopped being best friends for almost her whole pregnancy..." Santana trailed off. It was hard to remember those times. She'd had almost no one in her life at all, no one except Puck, who barely counted since he was obviously in love with Quinn and was only using Santana to forget that. Combined with the fact that she was realizing her own sexual orientation...yeah, sophomore year had been bad. Brittany seemed to sense the pain that was coming with the memories, because she put her arm around Santana's shoulders.

"You don't need to talk about it if you don't want to."

"No, I want to," Santana said, taking a deep breath. She _did _want to talk about it. She had never gotten the chance before. "So after she had Beth, I went to the hospital alone to visit her. I wanted to apologize. And we ended up crying for an hour and telling each other that we would never let a guy get in the way of us again." Santana laughed hollowly. "She told me later that she had always known that she was different somehow, and that the only reason that she slept with Puck in the first place was because she was so dissatisfied with Finn and she just wanted to feel something. So yeah, no guy was going to get in the way of us, but only because we were both gay as rainbows."

"Is that the day you came out to her?" Brittany asked.

"No, it was later. I went to visit her every day after that. And when she went home, I brought her homework to her and took notes for her and everything so that she could pass sophomore year. There was no way I was going to be a junior without her. And we talked a lot, and she told me how she regretted giving away Beth every hour of every day." Santana's eyes began to water and she struggled to keep her voice even. "I loved her. She was, like, the only person in the world that I felt like I could be myself around. And I started to have other feelings for her, too. Like, you know, sexual feelings."

"Did you tell her?"

"No, I didn't think she felt the same way at all. I knew she loved me as a friend and I tried to love her like that, too, but there was always this attraction...I tried not to think about it, though. I thought that maybe it would just go away. Anyway, this went on for like a month, and then she went back to school. And she was so worried about what everyone would say to her when she went back, so I told her that I would stick with her all day no matter what. No one tried anything, either. I told her that they were still scared of her, but I don't know, maybe they just felt bad. So then after school, I drove her to her house and I walked her to the door..." Santana paused and bit her lip.

"What?" Brittany asked. She smiled. "Is this about to get juicy? Tell me!"

"Fine," Santana said with a smirk. "I walked her to the door and she thanked me for everything I had done for her. She told me that she loved me and then she suddenly leaned forward and just...kissed me on the lips. It was just, like, a peck. I was totally shocked, I couldn't even move. And then I think she felt embarrassed because she suddenly got awkward and said she was going to go inside. So I just stood there, frozen, while she unlocked her door. And she opened it to go inside and turned around to say goodbye to me and that's when I suddenly snapped out of it. And I put my arms around her and kissed her again and," Santana rolled her eyes at Brittany's interested expression, "it was more than just a peck that time."

"Wow," Brittany said with a smile. "So you guys have been dating since then?"

"Yeah, I mean, we talked about it first for a while. We both sort of came out to each other and talked about our feelings. We decided to become official about two weeks later, and that's about the time I told my family." Santana shrugged. "So there's my story."

"You're really lucky," Brittany said, playing with the hem of her shirt. "I wish I could start dating my best friend."

"I think that, if you do it right, you sort of become best friends once you start to date," Santana said. "At least, that's what I've heard."

Brittany shrugged. Then she looked at Santana, locking her blue eyes with the other girl's brown ones. For a moment, Santana thought she saw something in Brittany's expression, something more than had been there before, and a shiver of anticipation ran down Santana's spine. "I hope I become best friends with the person I fall in love with, then," Brittany said, looking at Santana pointedly.

Santana suddenly found herself unable to respond.


	8. Chapter 8

The rest of the week passed quickly and uneventfully. Brittany began full-time Cheerios practices, which were tougher than she had expected, but at least she got to hang out with Santana and Quinn a lot. Football practices were held at the same time, so Brittany would occasionally see Puck lingering around. He would wave to her whenever he saw her, causing some jealously from the other girls on the squad and making Brittany something of a legend. On Friday, he walked up to her as she and some of the other girls were on a water break and reminded her that he would pick her up at nine for the party. It had caused quite a stir as everyone else clamored to find out exactly how she had managed to score a date with Noah Puckerman, the hottest guy in the school. Brittany had answered modestly and had tried to seem excited about it, but she couldn't help but notice that Santana avoided them whenever Puck was brought up in conversation. When Santana drove the two girls home at the end of the week, she didn't say a word throughout the entire journey, and Brittany decided not to question the other girl's behavior. After all, she would see Santana at the party—hopefully.

Brittany was completely ready to go by 8:45 that evening, so she went into the living room and sat down on the couch with her parents. Emily had gone out to the movies with some new friends, and her parents had rented a movie and were preparing for a quiet evening without their children. They both looked over at Brittany as she sat on the edge of the couch, feeling antsy.

"You look nice, honey," her mother said. "Are you going out?"

"Yeah, I'm going to a party," Brittany replied. "At some guy's house. I don't really know him. He's in our grade."

Mr. Pierce raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you should be going to some random party?" he asked. "I know what goes on at those things. Don't accept anything anyone gives you, is that clear?"

"Relax, dear, Brittany needs to get out and meet new people," Mrs. Pierce said. "Besides, you'll know some people at the party, won't you?"

"Yeah, everyone's going," Brittany replied quickly. "All of the new friends I made will be there."

"Is Santana giving you a ride?" Mrs. Pierce asked. "You two can borrow my car if you want."

"Um, no actually," Brittany said. "This guy is coming to pick me up. His name is Puck. Actually, I don't think that's his first name, but I'm not sure." She bit her lip. Her parents did not look thrilled.

"What do you mean, you don't know his name?" Mr. Pierce asked, sounding highly suspicious.

"No, I mean...it's complicated," Brittany said. "He has, like, a bunch of names." She frowned. She wasn't doing the best job of ingratiating Puck with her parents. "He's nice," she told them.

"So he's coming here to pick you up?" her mother asked. Brittany nodded. "Well, that's okay, then. As long as we can meet him when he shows up."

"Okay," Brittany said smiling happily. She pulled her phone out of her pocket to check the time. It was still not nine o'clock yet. She put her phone away and pouted impatiently. When she glanced over at her parents again, they appeared to be whispering to each other. "What?" she asked.

"Huh?" Her father looked up. "Oh, nothing, don't worry about it." He forced a smile quickly, but Brittany's eyes trailed over to her mother, who was not smiling.

"Mom?" she asked.

"It's just that your father and I had thought-"

"It doesn't matter anymore," her dad interrupted. He narrowed his eyes at his wife. "So this boy, do you like him? Do you think he likes you?"

"Um, maybe," Brittany said, blushing. She was usually pretty open with her parents about this sort of things, but today they were acting particularly odd, and she wasn't sure how much she should share. "Do you not want me to me dating so soon or something?"

"No, not at all, we want you to go out with this boy," her mother replied, a little too quickly.

"Well, we don't necessarily _want_ you to be rushing into a relationship," her father corrected, still looking at his wife out of the corner of his eye. "We just want you to do what makes you happy."

"Okay..." Brittany said. She was getting really weirded out by her parents' behavior. She looked anxiously out of the window, wishing that Puck would just get here already, but the street was dark and empty.

"Have you been hooking up with Santana?" her mother blurted out suddenly. Brittany's head whipped around and she looked at her mom in shock. The same look was mirrored on her father's face.

"It's really none of our business," Mr. Pierce said, more to his wife than Brittany.

"I know it isn't but I have to know, sweetie, I have to." She looked at Brittany with pleading eyes.

"I...no, I haven't been," Brittany said, bewildered. "Why would you think that? Just because she likes girls and I've been hanging out with her?" Her mother shrugged halfheartedly. Anger was bubbling in the pit of Brittany's stomach, and she wasn't exactly sure why. "Do you think that I hook up with people who I barely know?"

"Of course not!" her father said. "It's just that your mother saw Santana with some girl and thought that it might have been you...of course we know you would never do that, especially with a girl, we just wanted to check-"

"Especially with girl." Brittany repeated the words, feeling slightly sick. "What does that have to do with anything?" She looked over at each of her parents' awkward faces. "You probably saw Santana with her _girlfriend_, Quinn, since she's a good person and I know she would never cheat." Her words came out like venom and her parents remained quiet, not knowing how to respond to the tone that their daughter was using. Luckily for them, the doorbell rang at that moment.

"That must be him," her mother said, suddenly composing herself.

"I'll get it," her father said, standing and heading towards the door. Brittany remained sitting on the couch, and her mother looked over at her sadly.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I don't want you to be mad at me."

Brittany stared at the ground. "I'm not," she said, but her tone revealed otherwise. Truthfully, she wasn't sure why her parents' words had stung like a personal insult. After all, they had been talking about Santana, not about her. As her father brought Puck into the room, Brittany plastered a smile onto her face and tried to act normal. But actually, she was still trying to figure out why she cared so much.

* * *

><p>Santana was angry. She had found out the day before that Puck was taking Brittany to Azimio's party, and she was not at all happy about it. Furthermore, she was frustrated with herself for caring so much about who Brittany went out with, which only worsened her mood. Quinn had suffered the most abuse from Santana's anger, but her parents and brothers had also felt some of the heat, and it was no wonder that Santana was currently alone at the party, sitting in the corner sipping on vodka and orange juice and glaring at anyone who tried to come near her. Quinn had disappeared the second they had gotten inside. She was off hanging out with Finn and some ditzy cheerleader girl, and frankly, Santana couldn't blame her. In her current state, the Frankenteen was probably better company.<p>

Across the room, the front door opened, and the people who Santana least wanted to see entered the party. She turned around to try and shield her face, but Brittany spotted her right away. Santana forced a smile as Brittany took Puck's hand and dragged him across the room. "Hey, Santana," she said, pulling the girl into a hug.

"Hey," Santana said, hugging her back and letting go quickly. Puck stood behind Brittany's shoulder, looking smug, and Santana glared at him.

"Why are you over here all alone? Where is Quinn?" Brittany asked as they pulled apart. She looked truly concerned, and the thought that Brittany cared about her made Santana's stomach do a flip.

"She's, um, talking to Finn. I was with her, I was just getting another drink."

"Oh, okay," Brittany said. Puck reached forward to take her hand again, looking as though he wanted to end the conversation with Santana as soon as possible. He leaned forward so his mouth was by her ear.

"Let's go dance," he said to her.

"Okay!" Brittany said, her face lighting up. "Santana, come with us!"

"Uh, no," Santana said quickly. "I, um, I have to get back to Quinn. Sorry." She tried to ignore the pout on Brittany's face as she now had no choice but to walk over and join Quinn, Finn, and the Cheerio girl. "I'll see you guys later," she said as she left.

"'Kay, bye," Brittany said with a small wave. Puck just gave her a nod. The two of them headed over towards the makeshift dance floor while Santana made a beeline for Quinn. When she reached the other girl, she wrapped her arms around Quinn's waist and whispered in her ear.

"Can we go somewhere else? I don't want to talk to these losers."

"No," Quinn snapped. "They're my friends."

Santana looked at Finn, who was steadily moving closer to the Cheerio girl with an awkward look on his face, and she rolled her eyes. She pulled Quinn out of earshot of both of them. "They're not your friends. Come _on_, let's go get our mack on or something."

Quinn shook her head. "We're at a party, Santana. We're here to socialize. I'm not going to go make out with you in a corner." She sounded exasperated.

"Really? We're here to socialize with the oaf and that J.V. loser?" Santana sighed. "Okay, I get it. You're mad at me because I've been acting like a bitch all day. I'm sorry, I really am. Is that better?"

"Whatever, Santana," Quinn said loudly, causing many people to turn towards them. "I just need to get some air or something. I'll be back."

Santana watched as her girlfriend walked away, leaving her very much alone in the middle of the living room. She groaned and threw back the rest of her drink. Clearly, the only way she was going to be able to handle this party was if she got incredibly drunk.

* * *

><p>Quinn stormed out onto Azimio's back porch, shooting a disgusted look at the couple making out on the loveseat as she went. Santana was getting on her last nerve, and Quinn was <em>so <em>not in the mood for it. She walked over to the edge of the deck, hoping to sit on the stairs, but she was surprised to find that someone else was already there. "Rachel?" she asked, looking at the back of the other girl's head.

Rachel turned around quickly. Her face looked sad, but she forced a smile as she said, "Hi Quinn." She moved over and motioned for Quinn to sit next to her. Quinn hesitated momentarily, but her unwillingness to be alone won over and she sat down.

"Hey," she replied. "Getting bored? Want me to get you a drink?"

Rachel shook her head. "I'm not that into alcohol. But I'd be happy to get you one."

"No thanks, I have to drive me and Santana home," Quinn said, noticing how Rachel's face fell slightly at the mention of her girlfriend's name. The shorter girl sighed and traced her fingers along the rough wood of the staircase.

"Why aren't you inside?" she asked. "With your friends."

Quinn laughed. "I don't know if you noticed, Rachel, but I don't really have friends anymore. The fear of Santana is probably the only thing that keeps me from being slushied like everyone else."

"At least you have her." Rachel looked down at the ground, holding back tears. The devastated look on her face made Quinn's heart break, and she placed a comforting hand on Rachel's back. She struggled to think of something to say to make Rachel feel better, but Rachel spoke first. "He's going to hook up with that cheerleader, isn't he?"

Quinn knew immediately that Rachel was talking about Finn, and her heart sank. "I don't know," she said in a low voice. "Do you care?"

Rachel shrugged. "I'm not sure," she said.

"Well, you're sitting out here, so you must care." Quinn was starting to feel irritated, and had half a mind to go back inside and punch Finn in the face. "Can't you just get over him, already? He's such a stupid douche."

"I'm sorry!" Rachel said, starting to cry. Quinn immediately wished she could take back what she said. After all, she knew how much Finn used to mean to the other girl, and getting over him completely would undoubtedly take time. "It's just not that easy, you know?" Rachel said tearfully. "Between him with that girl, and you and Santana, I just...I don't even know why I'm at this stupid party." She sniffled and tried to wipe away her tears with her hand, but they just kept coming. Quinn began to rub her back in small circles.

"Me and Santana?" she asked after a moment. Rachel just nodded. Quinn's pulse began to quicken. "I didn't know that this is...what you wanted. I thought we talked about it and decided-"

"I do want it, Quinn," Rachel said. "I changed my mind." She took a deep breath, as though it was difficult for her to say the words. "I wouldn't even care about Finn if I had you," she mumbled. "You know that."

Quinn was at a loss. Part of her wanted to get up and run away, to go back inside and find Santana and leave Rachel outside to be someone else's problem. But the other part of her was rooted to the spot, desperate to hear what else Rachel had to say, wanting to know just how serious the other girl was. "I thought we had decided to keep things friendly," she practically whispered.

"I know, but I don't think I can anymore," Rachel said. She had finally managed to stop crying, and she looked up at Quinn seriously. Quinn could see the familiar determination in the other girl's eyes and knew that what Rachel was about to say had been well-rehearsed. Quinn had never been so smitten by Rachel's obsessive planning than she was in that moment. "I've had some time to think, Quinn," Rachel began. "I know I have feelings for you and they're not going away."

"And you think you want to...you know...be in a relationship with me?" Rachel nodded. "Rach, I...I don't know what to say."

"When was the last time you let yourself have feelings?" Rachel asked desperately. She turned towards Quinn on the stair and took both of the girl's hands in her own. "When was the last time you did something impulsive? Everything in your life is so meticulous. You have Santana, you have the Cheerios...ever since you had your baby, you've been trying so hard to rebuild your life that you haven't let yourself do anything that you really wanted to. You're obsessed with perfection, Quinn, don't you see that?"

"Right, because being gay is perfect," Quinn interjected.

"It is the way you do it!" Rachel squeezed Quinn's hands tighter. "You're flawless, Quinn. You're beautiful and you're kind and you don't need to be a cheerleader or to be dating the popular girl for people to respect you. _I_ respect you no matter what."

Quinn was paralyzed. She wanted to say that Rachel was wrong, that she was in love with Santana and in love with cheerleading, and that she wouldn't trade either one for anything. But she couldn't. All her life, she had been waiting for someone to say those words to her. Finn had only wanted her to complete the quarterback-cheerleader stereotype. Even Puck, who had supposedly loved her, would never have looked her if she had been a nobody. But Rachel...Rachel should hate her for the two years of torment that she suffered through because of Quinn. Rachel should hate everything Quinn stood for, but she didn't. Rachel was prepared to give Quinn something that no one had ever given her before—a second chance. And hell if Quinn wasn't going to take it.

Subconsciously, she began to lean in. She watched as Rachel's face registered what was about to happen, watched as the other girl began to lean in to meet her. Rachel's eyes fluttered shut and Quinn allowed hers to do the same as they closed the final centimeters between each other and their lips met.

Quinn knew instantly that she was going to be doing this again. Rachel's lips were soft and gentle, unlike Santana's in so many ways. She let go of Rachel's hands and threaded her fingers through the other girl's hair, deepening the kiss and shivering in pleasure as Rachel's hands found her hips and tried to pull her closer. Gently, slowly, Quinn traced her tongue along Rachel's bottom lip, asking for permission to enter. Rachel granted it, and their tongues intertwined. The kiss was slow, yet determined, and Quinn couldn't remember ever feeling this way before. As with everything Rachel did, she poured all her emotions into the kiss. Quinn could tell that Rachel was asking—no, begging—for Quinn to be hers. Quinn didn't yet know how she wanted to respond. All she knew was that she wanted her kiss with Rachel to last as long as possible.

When they finally pulled away for air, Rachel rested her forehead against Quinn's. "Wow," she breathed. "That was..."

"Kind of amazing," Quinn finished for her. "Yeah, I know."

"Well, what does this mean?" Rachel asked. She moved her head away and looked up at Quinn with earnest eyes.

Quinn looked back and a smile crept across her face. She pulled Rachel's face towards hers. "It means I'm going to kiss you again," she whispered before crashing their lips together once more.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Sorry it's late! I don't know what got into me (yes I do, it was tumblr). Anyway, enjoy and thanks for all the reviews I've been getting, you guys are great**

* * *

><p>Brittany quickly forgot about her fight with her parents as she began to dance at Azimio's party. She was in her element. Puck's arms wrapped around her from behind as he tried to match her rhythm, but she didn't make it easy for him. "Slow down," Puck said with a laugh as he tightened his grip on her and tried to make her move in tandem with him.<p>

"Don't be so lazy," Brittany countered. She abruptly spun around in his arms so she was facing him, and she placed both her hands on his shoulders. "You need to move with the song, like this," she said, guiding him.

"Mmkay," Puck said, pulling her close. With Brittany instructing him, he did a little better, but not much. Brittany wondered what would be like to dance with someone who really knew how. She wanted to stop worrying about moving at Puck's pace and allow the rest of the world to disappear so that she could lose herself in the music like she did when she was dancing alone. She needed someone whose body would fit perfectly into hers, who would move with her in perfect synchronization. Someone like...

Her eyes wandered over to Santana, who was sitting alone again. Quinn was nowhere to be seen, and Brittany debated calling Santana over. However, she couldn't help but think that something was slightly off about Santana's behavior. Brittany decided to just stay alone with Puck. After all, if Santana wanted to find her, she would know where to look.

Puck brought his face closer to Brittany's, so close that she could smell the vodka on his breath. They hadn't had anything to drink at the party yet, and Brittany frowned. "Were you drinking before we got here?" she asked.

"Huh?" Puck pulled away slightly. "Um, yeah. So what?"

"Before you drove?"

Puck laughed. "Don't worry about it," he said, leaning in towards her again. He bent down to her ear. "Kiss me," he whispered in a husky voice. Then he moved his lips towards her own.

Brittany uncertainly leaned up to meet him. Puck immediately thrust his tongue into her mouth, and Brittany shut her eyes and tightened her grip on his neck. He was not a bad kisser, but for some reason, the kiss wasn't really doing anything for her. She felt Puck's hands travel down her back, towards the waistline of her jeans, and she immediately pulled away, catching her breath. Puck watched her with a glint in his eye as her breathing returned to normal, and when it did, he leaned down to kiss her again.

"Um, can we go sit down?" Brittany asked.

"Sure," Puck said. "Wanna go upstairs?" A few people around them had stopped dancing to watch the interaction, and Brittany blushed, shaking her head.

"I want something to drink," she said. Puck nodded and took her hand, leading her towards the couches in the living room, where several people were sitting.

"I'll be right back," he said, heading towards the kitchen to get her a drink. Brittany scanned the room, looking for someone to sit with. She spotted Santana in the corner, looking at her calculatingly. Brittany started to make her way over, but as soon as she and Santana made eye contact, the other girl turned quickly and began talking to the boy next to her. Feeling hurt and confused, Brittany sat down at the edge of one of the couches and pulled out her cell phone to pretend to be doing something.

Puck came back after a moment, carrying two red plastic cups in his hand. He gave one to Brittany and then motioned for her to get up. When she did, he took her place and pulled her onto his lap. Then he looked around at their company—three guys and two girls. "Hey," he said. "This is Brittany. She's new."

"Hi," Brittany said, feeling awkward sitting in Puck's lap. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Santana watching her again, and she tried to ignore it as the people she was sitting with introduced themselves. But it was difficult to shake the feeling of being stared at, and she forgot everyone's names as soon as they said them. Luckily, Puck began to talk to them about football, and Brittany wasn't really expected to join in.

Brittany began to sip on her drink, which turned out to be beer. She would have preferred water after dancing so much, but she wasn't exactly sure where it was and she didn't want to get up. So she sat and listened and tried to participate in the conversation as much as was appropriate. All the while, Puck held her around the waist. Santana had left the room when it had become clear that Puck and Brittany were there to stay, and by the time Brittany decided that she wanted to get up and find the other girl, Santana was nowhere to be seen. With a sigh, she leaned in to Puck sat tiredly.

"Let's go somewhere else," Puck said after almost twenty minutes. Brittany was bored, so she obliged eagerly. Setting her half-finished beer down on the table, she stood up and Puck followed close behind her. "Bye guys," he said as he took her hand again.

"Nice to meet you," Brittany said, allowing Puck to drag her away. "Where are we going?" she asked once they were out of earshot.

"You'll see," Puck said with a smirk.

* * *

><p>Santana leaned dizzily over the sink in Azimio's bathroom, looking at herself in the mirror. Three Santanas stared back at her. She couldn't remember how much she'd had to drink, but judging by her reflection, she had probably had a lot. The sad thing was, while the alcohol had clearly impaired her physical movement, her mental acuity was still very sharp. She still remembered exactly what was going on—Quinn getting mad at her, Brittany and Puck making out on the dance floor... Santana wished that she could attribute her jealousy about that to the fact that she and Puck used to date, but she knew that was ridiculous. Puck had probably hooked up with hundreds of girls since he'd been with Santana, and she hadn't really given a shit about any of it. What hurt her the most was that she had thought Brittany was different. She had thought that Brittany wouldn't be like all the other girls who clamored at the opportunity to hook up with 'the hottest boy in the school.' But she had been wrong. What else had she been wrong about?<p>

Outside the bathroom, she heard a door slam. Santana froze. She had gone into the bathroom that was inside Azimio's bedroom, appreciating the privacy. But now it seemed like someone else was going to use the privacy of the bedroom as well. Santana could hear the faint sounds of kissing, as well as a soft moan, and a moment later, the springs of Azimio's bed squeaked. "No fucking way," Santana muttered, heading for the bathroom door and fixing one of her most dangerous glares onto her face. She was prepared to tell the couple hooking up in the room to get lost, but as her hand reached the doorknob of the bathroom, the voice outside caused her to stop.

"You're so hot," a boy's voice said gruffly. Santana knew without a doubt that it was Puck, and she pressed her ear to the door. Her first thought was that Puck was hooking up with some other girl, even though he had brought Brittany as his date, and Santana smiled victoriously, pulling out her cell phone to take video evidence. Before she could, however, the girl's voice responded, and Santana's heart sank.

"I thought you said we were going to the basement to find Azimio," Brittany said breathlessly. There was silence as the two of them kissed, and the bed springs creaked again. The hand in which Santana held her cell phone began to shake violently, and she shoved the device back into her pocket, pressing her ear to the door.

"We are going to the basement," Puck said. "I know a shortcut." His voice was muffled and punctuated by the sound of kissing. It sounded like his face was buried in the crook of Brittany's neck.

"Can we go back to the party?" Brittany asked, and the uncertainty in her tone made Santana begin to worry. "I want to meet some more new people."

"No you don't, everyone here is a Lima loser," Puck assured her. Santana reached for the doorknob and cracked the door open slightly. She clenched her fist at the scene that lay in front of her. Puck was on top of Brittany, sliding his hands under her shirt and kissing her forcefully. Brittany, on the other hand, lay unresponsively beneath him, and she did not look happy.

"Please, Puck, I want to go back," she said as his hands moved farther up her shirt. Her eyes were fixed on the ceiling and there was obvious discomfort on her face. Santana wanted to do something, to say something, but she felt like she was rooted to the spot.

Puck pulled away and looked down at her. "Come on, we can kiss a little bit more, right? Then we'll go back. I promise."

Brittany looked upset. "Alright, I guess," she conceded. Puck grinned and caught her mouth in another searing kiss. Santana's heart began to pound. She knew that Brittany would never say no. She knew that the other girl was always trying to be as nice and as accommodating as possible. But she also knew that Brittany did not want to spend another second kissing Puck. Feeling dizzy, Santana struggled with herself. Should she burst into the room, revealing that she had been watching them from the bathroom the entire time? Or should she let it go, knowing that Puck would never do anything to intentionally hurt Brittany? Either way, she wanted to stop watching the scene in front of her, but for some reason, she couldn't look away.

Santana watched as Puck's hands moved farther up Brittany's shirt. They eventually came up to cup her breasts, and Brittany gasped. For the first time, the look in her eyes was truly fearful, and Santana knew that she could not remain silent any longer. With more forcefulness than she had intended, she threw open the door to the bathroom, allowing it to hit the wall with a loud bang. Puck and Brittany froze and looked up at her in shock.

"Get off of her, Puck," she snarled.

When Puck saw that it was only Santana, he rolled his eyes. "Chill out, Lopez," he said, his hands still up Brittany's shirt. "I know you're jealous but privacy much?"

Santana ignored him and looked past him to Brittany. Their eyes locked and Brittany looked at her pleadingly. Santana's stomach clenched. "I said, get the fuck off her. She told you she doesn't want this."

Puck looked from Santana down to Brittany and back. He rolled over onto his back and smoothed out his shirt. Then he got up off the bed, walked over to Santana, and grabbed her arm roughly. "What are you doing?" Brittany squealed, scrambling to get up.

"You need to cut the crap," Puck said, leaning in close to Santana. He wobbled slightly and Santana could tell that he had been drinking. "We all know exactly what's going on here. If you keep this up, I'm telling Quinn."

Santana's skin prickled at the insinuation in his words, but she refused to let it show. "Get out of here," she spat. "You're drunk."

"And you're a cheater and a slut," he responded. He let go of her arm and turned to Brittany, glaring at her. "And you, you'll make out with me in front of everyone but not when we're alone? What the fuck is up with that?" He narrowed his eyes angrily at her, and Brittany's lip began to tremble. "Whatever. I hope you can find a ride home." Puck yanked open the bedroom door and stormed out of the room, leaving a stunned Santana in his wake. She did not move for several seconds, processing what she had just heard. It wasn't until a single tear fell down Brittany's cheek that she sprang into action.

"Don't worry about him, he does this all the time," Santana said, crossing the room and sitting down on the bed next to Brittany. "Once he sobers up, he'll forget about the whole thing."

"I just want to go home," Brittany said with a sniffle. She wiped at her eyes and avoided looking at Santana.

Santana sighed. "Alright," she said. "Let me find Quinn and we can go." Truthfully, she didn't want to spend another minute at this party either. This whole night had been an enormous waste of her time.

* * *

><p>Quinn had no idea how long she and Rachel were sitting outside, kissing, pulling away to stare at each other, and kissing again once they had gotten their breath back. Quinn was surprised at how assertive Rachel could be. The other girl clearly had more experience with making out than Quinn had previously thought, although now that she thought about it, she wasn't exactly surprised. Even when she had teased Rachel mercilessly for being ugly, she always knew it had been a lie. The other girl was pretty damn hot, and several of the boys in their class obviously knew it. Quinn mentally kicked herself for not figuring it out earlier.<p>

"We could have had so much time," Quinn whispered as they pulled away.

"There's still time," Rachel replied. "The worst case scenario is that we only have two years together, but given the fact that we have not yet made arrangements for our future, I see no reason why we couldn't be together after high school-"

Quinn held up a hand to stop her. "I know," she said. "I mean we could have had it before...when me and Santana weren't together yet."

"Are you saying that you're not going to break up with her?" Rachel asked apprehensively. "I thought you were enjoying yourself."

"I am," Quinn said. "And I know that I need to do something about Santana. I'm just not entirely sure how to go about it yet."

Rachel nodded. "You know I'll wait for you," she said. "I understand how difficult these situations can be."

"Look, I'm going to work all of this out as soon as I possibly can," Quinn said, wanting desperately not to be the type of girl that left people hanging. She had done that before with Puck and Finn and she had hated herself for it. "Let me talk to Santana tomorrow and I'll call you as soon as I do."

"'Kay," Rachel said with a nod. Then she blushed. "I really like you, Quinn," she said.

Quinn wanted to return the sentiment, but before she could, both girls were startled by the sound of the back door banging. They instinctively put some more distance between each other, which was a good thing, since a moment later, Santana appeared at the top of the steps. She was swaying on the spot and she seemed pretty drunk. "We need to leave," she said, narrowing her eyes at the two girls. "What were you doing?"

"Just talking," Quinn said quickly, standing up. "Of course we can leave. Let me get my purse."

"Wait, you're leaving?" Rachel said, standing up too. "So soon?"

"We have shit to do, hobbit," Santana replied harshly. "Mind your own business."

"Don't be mean, Santana," Quinn said. She had half a mind to tell Santana to stay at the party or find her own ride, but she could see redness in her girlfriend's eyes and could tell that something bad had happened. So instead, she turned to Rachel apologetically. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I need to take her home."

Rachel nodded understandingly. "I'll talk to you tomorrow, then?"

"Definitely," Quinn replied with a firm nod. Santana tugged at her hand and she allowed herself to be led to the front door. Brittany was standing there, her mascara smudged around her eyes. "What's going on?" Quinn asked, suddenly feeling anxious.

"Not now," was all Santana said as she opened the front door. No one noticed as the three girls left the house. They didn't speak as they walked to the car. Quinn wanted to know what was going on, but she was too afraid to ask. So they drove all the way to Brittany and Santana's street in silence. Quinn tried not to think about anything, but her interactions with Rachel kept going through her head over and over. Now that she was away from the other girl, the whole evening felt unreal.

After a what felt like a much longer ride than it actually was, they reached Santana and Brittany's houses. Quinn pulled up to the curb in front of Santana's house and idled, waiting for the two girls to get out. Brittany wordlessly got out of the backseat, and Santana turned to Quinn. "You're not staying over?" she asked.

Santana looked sad, and suddenly Quinn felt so guilty that it was physically painful. What she had just done with Rachel had been impulsive and completely unfair, but now that it had happened, she couldn't just spend the night at Santana's without being unfair to Rachel as well. So Quinn shook her head, avoiding her girlfriend's eyes. "I can't, my mom wants me home tonight."

"I'm really sorry," Santana said, reaching out to take Quinn's hand. "I know I was acting like a bitch."

"This has nothing to do with that," Quinn said, trying not to cry. It was devastating to hear Santana apologizing to _her_ after what she had done. "Seriously, I want to stay, I just can't."

"Okay," Santana said, but she didn't sound convinced. She unstrapped her seatbelt and got out of the car. Quinn watched her walk up to her front door. Suddenly, Brittany came running over from the lawn of her own house. She threw her arms around Santana and buried her face in Santana's shoulder, her body shaking with sobs. Quinn saw the look of surprise on Santana's face, but watched as her expression softened and she wrapped her own arms around Brittany's waist. Neither girl seemed to say a word to each other, so Quinn resisted the temptation to go outside and find out what had happened. There would be time for that tomorrow. Instead, she watched for another moment as the girls clung to each other. With some sadness, Quinn noted that Santana seemed to be drawing comfort from her new friend that Quinn had not been able to give her. In the faint moonlight, Quinn thought she saw one tear fall down Santana's cheek.

They were still standing like that when Quinn finally drove away.


	10. Chapter 10

"Puck called me this morning to apologize," Brittany said, kicking the ground with the tip of her shoe. She and Santana were sitting on the front porch of Brittany's house. As soon as Santana had woken up—okay, and after she threw up and popped some Advil—she had gone straight over to check on her friend. Brittany seemed to have gotten over the shock of what had happened and now sort of seemed embarrassed by the whole thing.

"Good," Santana said, even though part of her wished that Puck had never apologized so that Brittany would hate him forever. "You're not going to go out with him again, though, right?"

"Probably not," Brittany said with a shrug. "It would be weird."

"Good," Santana said again.

"He doesn't seem like a bad guy."

"He's not. He just needs to be rejected every once in a while," Santana said. "Besides, I don't see you with someone like him anyway."

"Really?" Brittany looked at Santana in interest. "What kind of person do you see me with?"

Santana faltered. She wasn't exactly sure what she had meant and now she didn't know how to respond. So she gave a feeble shrug as she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Pulling it out, Santana found a new text from Quinn. She read it and then began to type back, frowning.

"What is it?" Brittany asked.

"Quinn. She wants to see me later today. She says 'we need to talk.'"

"Hm," Brittany said thoughtfully. "That sounds kind of serious."

"She probably just wants to know what went down last night," Santana said. Honestly, she wasn't too worried about what was going on with Quinn at the moment. She was more concerned with Brittany. Putting her phone away, she asked, "So are there any other guys that you're interested in?"

"Not right now," Brittany said. "I don't know anyone that well, yet."

Santana nodded, relieved. She knew she shouldn't be, seeing as she was dating Quinn and should really mind her own business, but something about the idea of Brittany with one of guys at McKinley just bothered her. Santana had been there—really, she had dated many of them—and they were, for the most part, as disgusting and rude as high school guys could be. She wondered if she would feel the same way if she was actually attracted to guys...yes, she would. The boys at McKinley were bad and that was a fact. "They all kind of suck," she thought aloud.

"Are they really _all_ bad?" Brittany asked.

"Yeah. The girls are, too, actually. Except, like...Quinn."

"And you," Brittany reminded her.

Santana shrugged as her heart rate began to increase. "I don't know," she said.

"Come on," Brittany said with a laugh, reaching her foot over and nudging Santana's leg with it. "Are you a good girlfriend or not?"

"I guess I wouldn't know," Santana replied. Normally, she would have responded with some sort of arrogant comeback, but Brittany seriously _did _things to her. She could barely think. "You would have to ask Quinn," she said, her voice catching in her throat.

"I might," Brittany replied. The side of her sneaker was still touching Santana's bare leg, and for some reason, the gesture felt intimate. Too intimate. _And why would she ask Quinn? _Santana thought. _Why does she care?_

Luckily, Brittany's parents came out of the house, and Brittany and Santana had to move apart so they could walk past them. "Bye girls," Mrs. Pierce said.

"Where are you going, Mom?" Brittany asked.

"Oh, didn't I tell you? There's a lunch for new parents at the school today," she said. "Your father and I are going to meet some people. I know I told you about it."

"Oh. Right," Brittany said.

"I left stuff for sandwiches on the table, so you need to make lunch for you and Emily," Mrs. Pierce continued.

"Okay," Brittany replied. "See you later."

"See you," Mr. Pierce said as he followed his wife across the lawn.

Brittany turned to Santana. "I guess I should go and make lunch," she said. "Do you want to stay? I can make you a sandwich, too." She looked at Santana hopefully.

"I should go," Santana said quickly. "My mom probably wants me home."

"Alright," Brittany replied sadly. Santana almost changed her mind and told Brittany she could stay, but she knew it was a bad idea. Whenever she was around Brittany, she starting having feelings that she didn't even want to think about. Brittany stood. "I'll talk to you later, I guess."

"Bye," Santana replied regretfully.

* * *

><p>The Pierces arrived at the parent lunch and took their name tags. In addition to the new parents, there were also several parents whose children had been at the school for many years, who were there to meet everyone and answer questions. Most of the new parents had children who were freshman, but there were a few people who, like the Pierces, had children who had just transferred into one of the older grades. These parents had been assigned to sit together at several tables in the back, and the Pierces made their way over.<p>

The name tags had the names of both the parent and their student, and Mrs. Pierce looked to see if any of the names were of kids that Brittany had talked about. She didn't recognize any of the names at her table, but she engaged them in small talk nonetheless. Like Brittany, Mrs. Pierce had a natural gift for conversing with people she had just met. The table filled up until there was only one empty seat, to the left of Mrs. Pierce. A couple minutes after lunch began to be served, a frazzled blond woman hurried over to their table and sat down. "Sorry I'm late," she announced to the group.

"No worries, we were just getting started," Mr. Pierce offered kindly. Mrs. Pierce looked over at the woman's name tag. It read 'Judy Fabray,' and beneath it, her daughter's name was printed in smaller letters: 'Quinn.'

"I think our daughters are friends," Mrs. Pierce exclaimed, and Judy turned towards her in surprise. "Hi, sorry, I'm Ann Pierce," she said. "Brittany's mom."

"Nice to meet you," Judy said, shaking Mrs. Pierce's hand. "I think I remember Quinn mentioning your daughter."

"Yes, we live next door to Santana Lopez," Mrs. Pierce continued happily. "So Brittany sees Quinn a lot."

"Ah, yes, Santana," Judy repeated. "Quinn's known her for a long time." Mrs. Pierce failed to notice the way the other woman's expression changed when she mentioned Santana. Instead, she plowed on, talking too much, as usual.

"We love Santana," she said. "She's such a nice girl. You must be so glad that she and your daughter are dating."

Judy froze. Color flooded her face and she looked at Mrs. Pierce with bewildered eyes. Mrs. Pierce felt suddenly anxious and began to stutter, wondering if she had said the wrong thing. However, as she watched, Judy's expression returned normal and she gave an obviously forced smile. "Yes, I'm very happy for them," she said tersely.

Mrs. Pierce gave a small smile in return, but Judy turned away from her and began to talk to the woman next to her. Mrs. Pierce looked at her husband with wide eyes. He shrugged in response, but she couldn't shake the feeling that she had just done something very, very bad.

* * *

><p>Quinn was lying on the living room couch, watching T.V., when her mother came home. "Hey," Quinn said by way of greeting. Judy did not answer. She marched over to the couch and turned off the T.V., and then looked at Quinn dangerously. Quinn's heart immediately dropped.<p>

"I heard some interesting news today," Judy said, and Quinn could tell that her mother was struggling to keep her voice even. "From your new friend's mom."

"Uh, what did you hear?" Quinn asked nervously. She wasn't quite sure she wanted to hear the answer. Normally, Judy was too scared to timid Quinn like this, so whatever she had heard must have made her _really _angry.

"Is it true that you're," Judy's voice started to shake, "...in a relationship...with Santana Lopez?"

Quinn's eyes widened in shock. She was filled with dread but she knew she couldn't deny it any more, and she knew her mother would not believe her if she lied. "Yes," she admitted. "I'm dating Santana."

Judy collapsed onto the couch and put her hand over her eyes. Quinn remained motionless while her mother breathed deeply for several minutes. "How long?" she asked finally.

"Several months," Quinn replied.

"And why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I thought you would be mad." Quinn voice started to shake and she felt tears come to her eyes, but she forced them back. She needed to remain strong. It was the only way she was going to make her mother accept her.

"Well you were right, I _am_ mad!" Judy exclaimed. She moved her hand from her face and looked Quinn dead in the eyes. "I'm furious. You know how I feel about that girl."

"And you wonder why I didn't tell you!" Quinn replied angrily. "Did it ever cross your mind that maybe I didn't want to hear you say bad things about my girlfriend?"

"Well you can't expect to sneak around and lie and then expect me to say good things about her when you finally tell me. I can't believe she was _here_ all those times and you didn't tell me. All those times you two went out together. There would have been _rules_, Quinn. Do you realize that?" Quinn couldn't remember her mother ever being this angry before. "I wouldn't have allowed all those sleepovers, all those outings. You would have a had a curfew. I would have insisted on getting to know her better before I allowed you to go out with her. You've really betrayed my trust."

"Listen to yourself!" Quinn said. "Why would I have wanted any of that? You would make me come home early, you would stop us from going on dates...you would make up any excuse so that I wouldn't be able to see her as often and you would blame it on your stupid _rules_."

"Quinn, it's not fair for you to ask me to treat you the same because you are a lesbian and then to turn around and ignore the guidelines I would set for you in any heterosexual relationship. It's not fair at all."

"I'm not _asking_ to be treated the same!" Quinn said. "You should just treat me the same because I _am_. This isn't about my sexual orientation at all. Okay, so I shouldn't have lied. But I've lied about tons of things in the past and you haven't been like this before. Admit you're only mad because you found out I'm actually dating a girl."

"Don't make this about something it's not," Judy warned. "I expect you to be honest with me. And you weren't. That's the only issue here."

"And I expect _you_ to be honest with _me_," Quinn countered. "You've had a problem with me being gay since the moment I told you and you didn't know how to deal with it so you looked for a scapegoat. And now you found one."

"How many times do I need to tell you that I don't have a problem with your sexual orientation?" Judy asked in frustration.

"You don't need to tell me any more. You need to stop lying because it's pissing me off."

There was silence as Judy recoiled. Quinn could tell that, once again, she had gained the upper hand. But instead of making her happy, it only made her madder. _This is why I got kicked out last year_, she thought to herself. _This is why Dad left. Because my mom is a fucking coward_.

"Alright," Judy said finally. "I'll be honest with you if you're honest with me. Is Santana the only girl that you've ever liked?"

Quinn thought about Rachel and her mouth went dry. "Yes," she lied.

"And you've been dating since before you came out to me?" Quinn nodded. "Is it possible that your feelings for her are maybe...more friendly than you thought?"

"Mom," Quinn said in exasperation. "We are not having this conversation. I'm attracted to girls, this is real."

"Okay," Judy said quickly. "I just...you always seemed to like Finn so much, so I just wonder if maybe...I don't know, if maybe you're just confused."

"I'm not confused," Quinn said firmly. "I know what I want."

"I just think that maybe if you spent some time away from Santana, you would start to reevaluate a little bit."

_The fuck? _Quinn thought. "What are you saying?"

"If you still feel like you want to be with her after some time apart, then I'm not going to stop you. But I just want you to try being away from her for a little bit and see what happens."

"Mom, I'm not going to stop seeing Santana!" Quinn said. As she spoke, her mind drifted back to her promise to Rachel and the text she had sent to her girlfriend earlier that day. She _had_ been planning to maybe break up with Santana. But she sure as hell wasn't going to tell her mother that and allow her to have the satisfaction. "I love her," she said instead, waiting to see how her mother would react.

It wasn't a good reaction. Judy's face paled and she looked slightly sick. "You've been friends for a long time," she said haltingly. "Of course you love her."

Quinn shook her head. "Not like that, Mom."

"You know what I think?" Judy said, getting angry again. "I think Santana has always pressured you into doing things that you didn't want to do. You became friends with her and then you started hanging out with that Puckerman boy, and pretty soon you got pregnant, and you lost your spot as head cheerleader—to _her_, I might add. This is just another one of her little adventures, I can see it."

"Mom, you're so completely wrong about this!" Quinn exclaimed. "I can't even—do you hear yourself right now? Are you implying that, like, Santana _made_ me gay?" She shook her head in disbelief. "How the hell could you think something like that?"

"Don't swear in my house!" Judy said, getting up from the couch and taking a menacing step towards Quinn. Quinn leaned back in shock. "You are getting more and more rebellious and difficult and it started when you began spending time with her! You've just proven my point. From now on, you're not going to see her anymore and that's final!"

Quinn stood up too. "Well then I'm not going to live here anymore!" she shouted. She marched towards her room. "I'll pack up right now."

"No you won't!" Judy said, chasing her.

"What's the big deal, you kicked me out before! Why can't you do it again? Huh?" Quinn finally lost her ability to hold back tears, and they streamed down her face as she yelled at her mother. "I'm finished with you! You're a terrible mother." She ran into her room and slammed her door shut.

"I'm only doing you a favor!" her mother called through the door. "You'll thank me someday."

"Like fuck I will!" Quinn sobbed back, looking frantically around her room. She found her purse and shoved her phone, wallet, and keys inside. Her finished homework lay on her desk, and she put it into her backpack with everything she needed for school. Then she flung open her closet, looking for clothes. Her mom opened the door, saw the backpack on her shoulders, and lunged towards her.

"You're not leaving!" she said, trying to grab onto Quinn. "Stop being such a child!"

_No time for clothes_, Quinn thought. She pushed her mother roughly and hurried towards the door. "I'm leaving!" she said, running down the hallway. "I never want to see you again!"

"Quinn!" Judy tried to follow her, but Quinn was too quick. She ran outside and threw her backpack into the passenger seat of her car, getting in on the driver's side. Through the heavy glass of the window, she could hear her mother calling for her. Quinn immediately started the car and drove recklessly down the street. In her rearview mirror, she saw her mother fall to her knees on the front lawn.

Quinn only made it three blocks before she pulled over and broke down crying.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Hey guys, I just wanted to thank you for all your reviews. And I don't want any of you to worry, because the Faberry and Brittana will pick up very shortly-there's just a few Quinntana things that I need to wrap up first. Also, I realize that this story is becoming kind of angsty, which wasn't my original intention. The angst will last a little bit longer but I'm hoping to make things happier soon. :) As always, thank you for reading.**

* * *

><p>An hour or so later, Quinn approached Santana's front door with dry eyes. She didn't even have to knock before her girlfriend threw open the door for her. "Hey, Quinn, I was just about to come over to talk to you," Santana said. Then she looked curiously at Quinn's puffy eyes and the backpack she was carrying. "Quinn?" she asked worriedly. "What's wrong?"<p>

It was all Quinn could do not to break down sobbing. "I might—I might need a place to stay for a few days," she choked out.

"Of course," Santana said with a nod, pulling Quinn inside. She was still looking at Quinn with a mixture of confusion and fear. "What happened? Do you want to talk about it?"

"Uh, in a minute." Quinn dropped her backpack onto the floor of the Lopez's living room and looked around. She already longed to go back home. Santana's house was like a second home to her, and she was better off here than anywhere else, but she still couldn't shake the growing dread she felt as the memory of the conversation with her mother sunk in.

"Do you want to go upstairs?" Santana asked gently. Quinn didn't respond right away. She stood rooted to the spot as Santana's mother suddenly came around the corner from the hallway.

"Hi, Quinn," she said, noticing the tension in the room. "What's wrong, honey?" As she spoke, she walked across the room to give Quinn a hug. At the maternal gesture, Quinn could not contain herself any longer, and she began to cry.

"I'm sorry," she said between sobs. "I don't want to impose..."

"You're not," Mrs. Lopez said firmly. "Come on, we're going to the kitchen. I'm going to make you some tea."

"Mom!" Marco called from his bedroom. "Can you make me some, too? And toast?"

"Fuck off, Marco!" Santana responded. Moments later, Marco appeared in the doorway. He looked in surprise at Quinn and then back up at his mother.

"Mom..." he began.

"What your sister said," she replied. "Come on Quinn..."

Marco slumped and went back to his room as the three women went into the kitchen. Mrs. Lopez put some hot water on and Santana held Quinn's hand until she calmed down. Once she had, she told them what had happened.

"I think she must have heard it from Brittany's mom," Quinn said. "Did you tell her that we were dating?"

"I told Brittany..." Santana replied. "Not her mom."

"Ugh," Quinn put her head in her hands and started crying again. "I shouldn't have tried to keep this a secret. I _knew _this would happen."

"No, you don't owe your mom anything," Santana said. "It's not her life, you can keep whatever secrets you want."

"Santana..." Mrs. Lopez began. Then she turned to Quinn. "Your mother loves you. She's just trying to protect you."

"She, like, suggested that I'm not even gay," Quinn said. "After all this time, after everything I went though to come to terms with this and then to come out to the school and to her, she just turns around and says none of it matters?"

"She just wishes you could have an easier life, that's all," Mrs. Lopez said.

"Yeah well if she wants my life to be easier, maybe she could be a little more damn accepting. Because the only person making my life hard right now is her."

Santana took Quinn's hand again and squeezed it. Her mother watched sadly. "Maybe I could call Judy," she suggested. "I should talk to her about this. In fact, we should all have a discussion."

"No," Quinn said quickly. "At least...not right now. I don't think I can handle it."

"No, of course not," Santana said. "You can stay with us as long as you want. We love you more than she does, anyway."

"Santana, stop it," her mother said.

"What? It's true, Mom, I fucking love Quinn, I would never kick her out for anything."

Mrs. Lopez couldn't help but smile a little bit at the amount of affection her daughter was displaying. It was unusual to see Santana be so caring. Even if her methods of comforting were a little unorthodox. "Her mother loves her too, she's just misguided," Mrs. Lopez said. "And we're going to figure everything out. But right now, Quinn, Santana's right, you can stay with us."

"Thank you," Quinn said, fresh tears appearing in her eyes. She wiped them away and drank some of her tea.

"I'll take your stuff up to my room," Santana said, standing.

"No you won't," Mrs. Lopez replied. She paused for a moment. "Go tell Marco to switch rooms with you, he has bunk beds. You guys can sleep there."

"Mom," Santana protested. "There's no way I'm going into his gross room and there's no way I'm letting him in mine."

"Well you're not sleeping together in your room, either. So it's either Marco's room or you can sleep on the couch in the living room and Quinn can sleep in your bed. Either option is fine with me."

"You _know_ there's a damn ghost in the living room, I told you that before," Santana said. Quinn snickered through her tears. "What?" Santana looked at her with narrowed eyes.

"I remember how you were always afraid of the dark," Quinn said, beginning to hiccup as she laughed and cried at the same time. Ever since they were kids, Santana had always been able to cheer Quinn up.

"I'm not afraid!" Santana protested. "There is _actually _a ghost that comes out at night and whispers my name. Christian and his friends even saw it one time and they said it had a bloody head."

"Sweetheart, Christian and his friends were high when that happened," her mother explained calmly. "There is no ghost and it doesn't whisper your name. It's probably just something that sounds like your name."

"Like bandana," Quinn suggested, her eyes finally dry. "Or banana. Or Fanta."

"Yeah okay, really funny guys," Santana said, rolling her eyes. "Besides, first you said there's no ghost, and now you're telling me that the ghost is probably saying something else, meaning you know that there actually is a fucking ghost and you want it to kill me."

Mrs. Lopez shrugged. "Maybe I do want it to kill you."

"Well too bad, woman, I'm not sleeping on the couch."

"Then go tell Marco to clean his room," she replied. "And then go clean _your _room, since it's a bigger mess than his."

"No! This isn't a simple case of him shoving his video game crap under the bed. There is, like, semen on the walls in there."

"I'll give you some bleach," Mrs. Lopez replied. "Now get out of here."

"I hate my life!" Santana yelled, kicking a chair on the way out. Mrs. Lopez shook her head as Quinn chuckled.

"That girl, seriously, I don't know how you put up with her. When she gets to college, I hope someone kicks her ass."

Quinn snorted. "I'll tell her you said that."

"I love my children," Mrs. Lopez said sincerely. "But they all need to be put in their place occasionally."

There was silence as Quinn became serious again. "How are you so supportive?" she asked. "Like, how come you are the complete opposite of my mom about this whole gay thing?"

Mrs. Lopez sighed. "I had a different upbringing, I suppose," she said. "My parents had gay friends. I was never told that there was anything wrong with it."

"But even so," Quinn pressed on. "I mean, my mom is like 'okay' with it, technically, she just thinks its something that the Fabrays don't do. To her it's like the equivalent of being poor or ugly or something. Sometimes I feel like I disgust her." She sniffled. "I feel like I can never be the daughter she wanted me to be."

"We all want the best for our children," Mrs. Lopez said. "It's just that sometimes we get carried away and we forget that they make their own decisions. And we forget that sometimes, the things that they want aren't necessarily the same as what we want. But as parents, we have to accept that we have no control over it."

"I just wish she could be proud of me."

"She is," Mrs. Lopez said. "I'm sure she is more proud of you than you realize. You know what I honestly think? I think she might be a little bit scared of you. You've handled this much better than she has, and it intimidates her. She feels like her daughter is a stronger person than she will ever be and she doesn't know how to deal with that."

"How do you know?" Quinn asked quietly.

"I often feel the same way. About Santana in particular. For all her crazy, she's a remarkably courageous person. And she knows what she wants. I worry sometimes that I can't keep up with her, that when she goes off to college she's never going to come back. Your mother probably feels the same way. I think she sees your determination to be your own person, to resist the people who are going to discriminate against you, and she knows that you're about to have the kind of life that she could never dream of having. You're planning to leave Lima after high school, aren't you?"

"Definitely," Quinn responded. She had made up her mind about that several months ago, and her decision wasn't changing.

"See, your mother knows that. And she doesn't know how to deal with it. I think that in her mind, she equates you being a lesbian with you wanting to leave this small town and go somewhere more open-minded. She doesn't realize that you wouldn't want the kind of life that's waiting for you here no matter what your sexual orientation. But she will realize it. And she'll learn how to deal with it."

"I'm all she has left," Quinn whispered, more to herself than anything. It was the first time she had truly realized that since her father had left several months ago.

"I know she's done a lot of bad things," Mrs. Lopez continued, "but think about how hard it is to lose a child." As she spoke, Quinn's hand trailed unconsciously to her stomach. She knew how hard it was, at least to some degree. "And cut her some slack. Us mothers need to be forgiven every once in a while."

Quinn nodded. "I wish you were my mom," she said by way of a thank you.

Tears sprang to Mrs. Lopez's eyes. "I might not be but I'm always here for you," she said. "Whenever you need someone to talk to. I love you like a daughter."

Quinn got up and walked around the table to hug her, starting to cry again, only this time, it was less because of sadness and more because of the overwhelming affection she felt for Santana's family. "Thank you," she said.

"Thank _you_," Mrs. Lopez replied. They pulled apart and both wiped at their eyes. Then Mrs. Lopez chuckled. "I better get Santana that bleach," she said.

Quinn grimaced and nodded. "That's probably a good idea."

* * *

><p>"I miss my room," Santana said, staring out of Marco's window at the side of Brittany's house. "This view sucks. I like being upstairs."<p>

"Upstairs _is_ farther from the ghost," Quinn agreed. She was lying on the bottom bunk, flipping through her history book. She had already done the homework, but looking over it again gave her something to do, which distracted her from thinking about her fight with her mom. In her mind, she tried to pretend that she and Santana were just having another sleepover, like they used to in elementary school. They would build a fort and watch the _Fairly Odd Parents_ on the tiny T.V. that was now used in Marco's room for his video games. Mr. Lopez would light a fire in the fireplace so that they could make s'mores and pretend they were camping. And then they would go back to Santana's room and sleep with half the lights on because Santana was afraid of the dark. They always planned to stay up all night, but somehow they always found themselves waking up to the smell of pancakes without any memory of falling asleep. "I miss the old days," she said softly.

"I don't," Santana replied, still looking out the window. "I hated the Cheerios and dating Puck and pretending to be straight."

"I mean before that," Quinn clarified. "Like when we were little."

"I pretended to be straight then, too."

Quinn looked at her in disbelief. "You can't possibly have known..." she began.

"I didn't _know_, I just knew something was weird," Santana said. Then she turned around and smirked. "I used to look at Christian's naked lady magazines."

"How old were you?"

"Like eight."

"Wow," Quinn said, shaking her head. "When I was eight, I don't even think I knew what a penis was."

"You don't have an older brother," Santana said. Through the window, she saw Brittany walk across her front yard. She threw something in the garbage can by the curb and then walked back into the house. Santana spun around so she was facing Quinn. "Are you mad at her?"

"Wait, what? Who?" Quinn asked, taken aback by the sudden change of subject.

Santana turned back to the window. "Brittany," she said. "I called her while you were talking to my mom and I told her what happened. She's really worried you're mad at her."

"If she hadn't told her parents, none of this would have happened," Quinn said. "So yeah, kinda."

"She didn't mean to do anything," Santana said. "She just doesn't really get that this is a thing people hide. She doesn't know why anyone wouldn't be themselves all the time, and she doesn't know why parents wouldn't accept their children, so she just says what's on her mind."

"Well, that's stupid," Quinn said bluntly.

"No," Santana replied, seeming hurt. "I don't think so. In the future, that's what everyone will be like. At least when it comes to sexual orientation and stuff."

"Well, look at her, she's so _innovative_," Quinn scoffed. "And you better not call her back and tell her about this conversation."

"I won't-" Santana began.

"Because I know my drama is _so_ interesting, but I kinda don't want everyone to know about it."

"Jeez, calm down, it's just Brittany," Santana said.

"Yeah, calm down Quinn, I only told the girl who has a tendency to tell everyone everything," Quinn said mockingly. "I only told the girl who doesn't understand the concept of secrets."

"She gets it now," Santana muttered. "I told her what your situation's like and she understands. So you can stop being mean."

"I'm sorry," Quinn said, feeling genuinely bad for insulting Santana's friend. "It's just, I can't _not_ be mad at her. Because of her, my life totally sucks right now."

"Girls," Santana's dad poked his head into the room. "It's bedtime."

"It's, like, nine-thirty," Santana said.

"You've had an emotionally difficult day, I think you need to sleep," he said. "And Mom wants me to tell you that the open door policy is still in place all night. She also said that if you try to use the ghost as an excuse, to tell you that ghosts can go through doors, anyway." He looked as though he were trying to hold back a laugh.

Santana groaned. "Fine."

"Goodnight," her dad said before leaving. Santana turned to Quinn.

"Top or bottom?" she asked.

"Um, your dad is leaving the door open," Quinn reminded her.

Santana laughed. "You dirty, dirty girl. I meant for the bunk beds."

"Oh!" Quinn blushed. "Bottom, I guess. I'm already here."

"'Kay." Santana got up and left, and Quinn put her book onto the floor and pulled back the covers. She heard Santana going into the bathroom, and she decided to turn off the light. As soon as she got into bed, extreme exhaustion washed over her, and she was half-asleep by the time Santana came back. She heard her girlfriend move the door so that it was only open a crack. Then she felt her own bed become lower as another body entered it. The covers moved aside, and moments later, Santana's arm wrapped around her waist from behind. The bed was small, but Quinn moved over a tiny bit so that they could both fit.

"Thought you hated cuddling," Quinn slurred, barely conscious.

"I do. I'm only here because of the ghost," Santana whispered, pressing a kiss to the back of Quinn's neck. "'Night," she said.

Quinn fell asleep before she could respond.


	12. Chapter 12

By fourth period, Rachel couldn't take it anymore. She _had _to find Quinn. Quinn hadn't called her yesterday, but at the time Rachel had decided to let it go, in case Quinn had broken up with Santana and needed some time to recover. Then it had crossed her mind that Quinn was blowing her off, but she _still _decided not to call, because obviously being obsessive and needy would not help her situation. When Santana arrived at school looking angry and alone, Rachel's hopes had risen again, but they were soon dashed when she found that Quinn was on the absence list. Now she was convinced that Quinn had tried to dump Santana and Santana had killed her—which was not an altogether implausible theory.

When the bell rang to signal the end of fourth period and the beginning of lunch, Rachel shot out of the classroom as fast as she could. She dropped her books by her locker and looked over at Quinn's locker, just to check if the girl had come to school late. But Quinn was nowhere to be found, so Rachel grabbed her lunch and went to the cafeteria to sit at a corner table and watch for the one person she least wanted to talk to, but the one person who might actually be able to help her.

She didn't have to wait long before Santana appeared. She came in through the double doors and began to scan the room. Rachel was sitting near the table where most of the Cheerios usually ate, and she waited anxiously for Santana to make her way over to that Rachel could ambush her. But to Rachel's surprise, Santana's eyes settled on a different table. She watched as Santana walked over to the other side of the cafeteria and sat down next to Brittany, across from Mike and Tina. Rachel frowned. She hated when things did not go according to plan, but as she thought more about it, she realized that it was probably better to talk to Santana in front of the glee club losers than in front of a bunch of judgemental cheerleaders. Rachel got up from her table and walked over to join them, sitting down casually next to Tina. "Hi girls, hi Mike," she said. "How are all of you on this lovely day?"

Tina looked at her skeptically. "Are you coming over here to tell us about an extra rehearsal or something?" she asked.

"No, not at all," Rachel replied, slightly offended. "Is it really that extraordinary that I would come by simply to enjoy the presence of your company?"

"Um, yes," Santana replied. "I can't think of one time where we enjoyed each other's company."

"Well maybe I was hoping to get to know you better," Rachel said brightly. "And may I ask where Quinn is? It's unusual to see you without her." She kept her tone light, but secretly, her heart was pounding. If Quinn _had_ broken up with Santana, and had told her it was because of Rachel, Santana was likely just waiting for the right moment to punch Rachel in the face. But Rachel was desperate to know where Quinn was, so she decided to risk Santana's wrath.

"Sick, I think," Santana said with a shrug. Her eyes darted the tiniest bit towards Brittany, and Brittany looked back with an expression that Rachel couldn't read. Rachel's brow furrowed. Santana's behavior was weird, not to mention that Quinn had seemed fine on Saturday night.

"That's too bad," Rachel said. "What does she have?"

"A cold," Santana replied shortly. She grabbed a piece of her sandwich and began to chew it on, but her movements seemed forced and Rachel could tell she was thinking about something else. Rachel was almost completely convinced that Santana was lying, but she had no way to prove it, so she just shrugged.

"Well, I hope she feels better," she said. "Maybe I'll call her later to see how she is. After all, it's important for everyone's voice to be in good shape. We have Invitationals coming up."

"Oh, right," Brittany said. "Mike and I have been working on a dance number that we wanted to show you later. We thought maybe we could do it while you sing your solo at Invitationals. Mike told me that you always do a solo."

"That sounds great," Rachel said enthusiastically. "I always wanted some sort of interpretive dance to go with my music. I think it adds so much emotion and meaning. What kind of style have you been working with?"

For the rest of lunch, Brittany and Mike talked about their dance. Rachel listened attentively and provided suggestions, but she kept looking over at Santana, whose mind seemed to be elsewhere. Santana barely ate her lunch and she kept checking her phone anxiously. And when she wasn't doing that, she was staring off into the distance. Twice, Brittany had to wave a hand in front of her face to get her attention. The second time, Rachel swore Santana looked like she was about to cry, but when she spoke her voice sounded strong, and Rachel thought maybe she had imagined it. It wasn't until the first bell rang and they all stood to leave that Santana finally approached Rachel. "Wait," she said in a low voice as Tina, Mike, and Brittany went ahead of them. Rachel lingered, pretending to repack her lunchbox, burning with curiosity and a little bit of fear. If Santana was going to seek revenge on her, now would be a perfect time, considering that the cafeteria was steadily emptying and they would soon be alone.

"What do you want?" Rachel asked in a shaky voice, looking around to make sure nobody was listening to them. "Is this about-"

"Don't call Quinn," Santana said.

Rachel gulped. "Why?"

"Because I said so. That's all. And if I find out you tried to call her...bad things will happen to you."

It wasn't as caustic as most of Santana's insults, which made Rachel think that something very serious was bothering the other girl. Screwing up her courage, she asked, "Did you kill her?"

"What?" Santana asked in surprise. "Berry, don't be retarded. I didn't kill her."

"Then why isn't she here?" Rachel asked, her voice coming out more high-pitched than usual. "I think you were lying when you said she was sick."

Santana sighed. "Some personal stuff came up, okay?"

"What personal stuff?" Rachel pressed.

Santana looked at Rachel in disbelief. "Seriously? You're going to pry? I said it was _personal_."

"I think Quinn would want to confide in me," Rachel said. "We're friends. She would tell me what was going on. She's told me stuff before."

Rachel watched as anger flashed across Santana's face. Clearly, Santana didn't like the thought of Rachel and Quinn being friends. However, Santana seemed to be struggling to control herself, and moments later, she turned to Rachel with what could only be described as a look of tolerance. "You've talked to her about serious stuff before?" she asked. "You've...helped her?"

Rachel nodded. "I happen to be quite good with feelings. I've had a lot of therapy in the past and I know how to ask the right questions. Also, though you may not believe it due to my verbosity, I'm a great listener."

Santana sighed and leaned against the edge of the table. She put a hand to her eyes and Rachel politely looked away—if Santana was going to cry, she didn't want to see it anyway. "I can't..." Santana began. Then she took a deep breath and cleared her throat. "I can't tell you anything," she said more firmly. "But if you want to talk to her yourself, then that's fine."

A smile crept onto Rachel's face at the thought of being able to see Quinn soon. "Thank you," she said. Then she bravely walked forward and wrapped her arms around Santana. "I don't know what's going on, but I know it's going to be okay. And if you want to talk about it, let me know."

"Geez Berry, what the hell are you doing?" Santana asked, pushing Rachel off of her. "I seriously hope this isn't the way you're planning on comforting Quinn. She has enough problems without having to deal with you being socially awkward." She was obviously trying to sound mean, but her voice had lost it's bite, and Rachel did not stop smiling.

"Okay. I'm sorry. It won't happen again." She picked up her lunchbox. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have class to attend."

"Okay," Santana said, not moving from the spot. Rachel wondered if she was planning on ditching her next class. Normally, she would report that kind of delinquent behavior when she saw it, but she decided to give Santana a break. She headed for the doorway. "Oh, Rachel, I forgot," Santana began, and Rachel turned around. "You, um, you need to come to my house. To see Quinn. That's where she is." Santana looked down at the floor and Rachel bit her lip.

"Alright," she said. Then she forced a smile. "Will do. Bye Santana." Rachel turned around and went into the hallway, which was now empty as everyone had gone to their next class. Out of sight of Santana, she turned and leaned against the nearest locker, feeling dizzy with concern. She had initially thought that Quinn's personal issues, as Santana had called them, had something to do with her and their kiss on Saturday night. But now, it didn't seem like that was the case. If Quinn was staying at Santana's house, then—to use a phrase that Rachel never dared to speak aloud—the shit had really hit the fan.

* * *

><p>The last class of the day was glee club, and for once, Santana could not wait for it to be over. She had been distracted and antsy all day, worrying about Quinn and all of the drama that was happening at her house. Her mother had called Judy Fabray in the morning to let her know that Quinn was safe and to suggest that they all meet once Quinn had calmed down. Mrs. Lopez had not filled Santana in on the details of their conversation, but as Santana had been getting dressed for school, she could hear her mother arguing—first on the phone and then with Santana's dad. Quinn had slept through the alarm and Santana hadn't woken her up, and then her mother came into their room and suggested that Quinn spend the day at home. Santana had begged to stay home, too, but her mom—already in a bad mood—had practically shoved her out the door. The only highlight had been finally getting to hang out with Brittany at lunch, but then stupid Berry came along and ruined it, as usual. Santana had only told her to talk to Quinn because she knew Quinn needed someone to confide in, and to be honest, she wasn't sure she could hold it together long enough to be there for her girlfriend. The whole situation was causing a lot of anxiety for her and making her somewhat weepy.<p>

"Hey guys," Mr. Schue said, walking into the room with the usual bounce in his step. Santana grimaced. "We're going to have to start prepping for Invitationals soon, and I wanted to do one important assignment before we start tackling our group numbers. The theme," he walked over to the board and picked up a marker, "is going to be 'Solos.'"

Rachel began to clap. "This is a great one, Mr. Schue!" she exclaimed. "I'm really excited."

"Now hold on," he said, holding up his pen warningly. "This assignment isn't just about performing a solo. It's about finding a song you connect with and expressing its emotional depth. You guys have done great in the past with our group numbers and choreography, with intense songs like 'Bad Romance' or 'Somebody to Love'-you know, the songs with big productions. But what I want right now is the opposite of that. When you're standing still, all alone, how can you sell it to the audience? How can you make then _feel _it? That's what this week is about."

Santana looked down at the floor. She was certainly having a lot of feelings right now, and this assignment couldn't have come at a better time. But she wasn't sure she wanted to share her problems with everyone in the glee club. Next to her, Mike raised his hand. "What if we can't really sing?" he asked.

"I don't believe that you can't sing," Mr Schue replied. "This week is about finding the song within your heart, and I think everybody has one. Now, I know this might be tough for some of you, since it's a different style than what you're used to. So I'm going to pair you up, and you're going to do a little performance for the other person. And your partner will grade you based on how much they feel the emotion that you're expressing through your song. Later, whoever is comfortable with it can do it in front of the whole club." He walked over to a stool in the corner of the room and lifted up a small black hat, which he shook up and down. The students could hear paper rustling inside. "I'm going to pick names and see who gets paired up."

Santana sighed. A one-on-one performance was almost worse. She wasn't sure how she was going to do this assignment, since it was her personal rule to keep her emotions under the surface at all times. But since Mr. Schue was not actually going to verify that they had done the song, maybe she could skip it and just pretend she had done it. It depended on who her partner was and whether they would corroborate her story. Santana crossed her fingers and hoped for Puck.

Rachel was first, and she got stuck with the new kid, Sam. Mike was with Kurt, and then Santana stopped listening. She only snapped to attention again when Mr. Schue called out, "Puck and Quinn." Then he looked around the room. "Quinn's not here, Puck, can you call her and let her know?"

"Uh, sure," Puck replied, his eyes wide. Santana bit her lip. Maybe she could talk to Mr. Schue and convince him to switch the partners. After all, Quinn was already having a tough week, and the last thing she needed was to sing an emotional song to her ex-boyfriend slash baby daddy. But that thought left her mind quickly when Mr. Schue pulled the last two names out of the hat.

"That leaves Santana and Brittany," he said. He grabbed the slips of paper and put them back into the hat. "Good. I'm going to let you all go early since you need to choose a song before you can start working. Have a great afternoon, you guys."

Santana remained frozen in her chair. She wasn't sure if she should be happy or not. On the one hand, Brittany was the only one who she had really confided in about the Quinn situation, so singing an emotional song about that might not be so bad. But Brittany brought on a whole new set of feelings, of shivery, weak-at-the-knees feelings, and Santana didn't want to deal with any of it. She needed to be there for Quinn and she needed to stop crushing—or whatever the hell it was—on someone else, even if that someone was very flirty and _very_ cute. As she lamented her situation, Brittany walked over next to her chair with a wide smile. "Hey, partner," she said.

"Hey," Santana replied nervously. The choir room began to empty out but Brittany sat down next to her.

"Is everything okay?" she asked. "With, like, Quinn and stuff?"

"I honestly don't know," Santana replied. She didn't plan on saying anything more, but Brittany looked at her expectantly, and Santana found herself continuing without meaning to. "I don't really know how to deal with any of this. I don't _want _to deal with any of this."

Brittany looked at her sadly. "I understand," she said.

"I just miss when everything was easy," Santana said. "Like, before I started dating Quinn. Before I started dating anyone."

"But relationships are supposed to make you feel good," Brittany pointed out.

Santana nodded. "I know. I don't know what's wrong with me."

"Maybe there's nothing wrong with _you_, maybe just the relationship."

Santana looked at Brittany in surprise. "You think?"

Brittany shrugged. "It makes sense."

"Quinn and I..." Santana thought for a moment. "We make out and fight and then make out again and it's so exhausting sometimes. And we're always sneaking around behind her mother's back."

Brittany traced a finger over the plastic of the chair. "It doesn't have to be that way."

"I don't think Quinn and I are capable of being any other way."

"No, I mean," Brittany paused. "You could break up with her."

Santana's eyes began to water. Somehow, she had known this was coming. "I can't break up with her. It would be like breaking up with my best friend."

"Or it would be like getting your best friend back," Brittany pointed out. "I bet you guys were better friends before you started dating."

"Yeah," Santana said, thinking back to the 'good old days.' "Yeah, we were." She wiped at her eyes. "Sorry, I don't usually cry in front of people."

Brittany shifted in her chair and took one of Santana's hands in her own. She laced their fingers together. "It's okay. I'm not one of those people who gets freaked out by crying." She held Santana's hand tightly until Santana was able to regain control.

"You're really good at this, you know," Santana said. "Handing feelings, I mean."

Brittany nodded. "Yeah, I guess. People don't expect me to have good advice, since I'm so dumb." Santana looked into Brittany's bright blue eyes and saw hurt, even though Brittany's tone had been good-natured.

"For the record, I never thought you were dumb," she said quietly.

"Thanks," Brittany replied. Their eyes locked and they stared at one another for several seconds. Then, unconsciously, Santana's eyes flickered down to Brittany's lips. And Brittany noticed. She suddenly let go of Santana's hand straightened up on her chair. "S-so," she said. "Um, whatever you decide to do, I hope it works out. And let me know if you want to talk about it."

Santana was taken aback. "Alright," she said, not sure what to do. Was she being dismissed? Had the conversation just ended? Luckily, it didn't matter, because Mike Chang chose that moment to stick his head in through the doorway.

"Hey Brittany, can we run our dance a few times? Rachel wants to see it first thing tomorrow."

Brittany looked up at him. "Sure," she said. "Auditorium?" She picked up her backpack and then looked at Santana. "Well, I gotta go. I'll see you later."

"Bye," Santana said with a small wave. Once Brittany had left, she leaned back in her chair in confusion. She had momentarily wanted to kiss Brittany, which probably wasn't the best idea, but...the way Brittany reacted had been unexpected. Santana could have sworn Brittany had been flirting with her since they'd met. Had she been reading the situation wrong? If she had...that was awkward. Santana lifted her backpack off the floor and stood to leave. Either way, she had to forget about what had just happened. It was time to go home—and see Quinn.


	13. Chapter 13

At three in the afternoon, Quinn was lying on the couch in the Lopez's living room like she had been for most of the day. The T.V. was on but she wasn't really watching and she wasn't even sure what show it was currently on. A large part of her wished she had gone to school—though she hadn't really been in the emotional state to see people, it was almost worse being alone. Christian had had the day off and had come home on his mother's orders to keep an eye on Quinn, but he had spent most of the time in his room. Quinn stared despondently at the T.V., hoping that Santana would come home soon. She was in such a daze that she didn't even realize she had company until someone cleared their throat from behind her. Quinn spun her head so fast that her neck cracked.

"Rach!" she exclaimed, sitting up immediately. She self-consciously ran her fingers through her hair, remembering that she had not yet taken a shower today. "Um, why are you here?"

Rachel glanced awkwardly around Santana's living room before crossing over to the couch and sitting on the edge of it. She looked at Quinn anxiously. "Sorry, Santana's brother let me in. I didn't mean to startle you."

"No, its fine," Quinn said, picking a piece of a chip off of her shirt. "Did you...uh, come here to see Santana?"

Rachel shook her head. "Santana sent me," she said. "I was concerned about your absence from school and she directed me here." Rachel looked at Quinn searchingly as though she was trying to figure out what exactly was wrong with her. Quinn sighed.

"Oh." She turned off the T.V. and shook out the blanket that had been covering her, folding it so that her hands would be occupied. Without looking at Rachel, she asked, "And did she, um, did she tell you why I was here?"

Rachel shook her head. "She told me that I would have to ask you. But I think I have an idea," Rachel added. Quinn's lip began to tremble and she let the folded blanket fall into her lap. Rachel reached forward and placed a comforting hand on her arm. "I'm so sorry, Quinn," she said.

Quinn shook her head and looked away. "It was bound to happen sometime," she croaked.

"How mad was she?"

"Pretty mad," Quinn confessed. "Santana's mom called her and told her I was here. And she still hasn't tried to come and get me or anything. I think she's..." Quinn swallowed hard, willing her eyes to stay dry, "I think she's glad I'm gone. At least for now."

"Don't say that," Rachel said. "I don't think that's true." The hand on her arm moved up to stroke her hair. Quinn unconsciously shifted close to Rachel, craving more contact.

"I'm sorry I didn't call you."

"It's alright, I understand," Rachel replied soothingly. "You had other things to worry about."

"I just don't think I can do...what I said I would do. The circumstances have changed," Quinn said, feeling immensely regretful. "I need Santana right now."

Rachel nodded. "I told you I would wait," she reminded Quinn.

"And I told you I didn't like that idea," Quinn said.

"I don't know how _you_ feel, Quinn, but my feelings for you are definitely very strong. I'm not just going to give up on you because of one little roadblock. Take your time, I'm here for you." Rachel bit her lip. "I really, really like you."

Quinn sighed and reached for Rachel's hand. "I know. I feel the same way."

"Then we'll focus on working things out with your mom and _then_ we can give this relationship a try, does that sound suitable?" Rachel looked immensely hopeful and Quinn's heart started to break.

"Santana told her mom that she loved me," Quinn said.

"Of course she loves you. You've been best friends forever," Rachel insisted. Quinn shook her head.

"I don't know. She definitely seems to love me in, like...the romantic way."

"How do you know?" There was a note of desperation in Rachel's voice and she looked at Quinn with worried eyes.

"Because," Quinn said, feeling frustrated. "She loves me and she's physically attracted to me. I mean, we have sex, Rachel. This isn't, like, a platonic thing."

Rachel seemed to cringe at the notion that Santana and Quinn had sex, but she didn't say anything about it. "Well do you love _her_?" she asked.

"Yeah, but more as a best friend, I think," Quinn said. "We discussed this."

"And are you attracted to her?"

"Well, I guess-"

"Then why is it so hard to believe that that's how she feels about you?" Rachel looked at Quinn sadly. "Please, Quinn, I like you so much. I just...I really want to be with you. More than she does."

"I just don't know-" Quinn was cut off as Rachel suddenly sprang across the couch and pressed her lips to Quinn's. She tangled her fingers in Quinn's hair and Quinn felt her entire body relax as she kissed Rachel back. Warmth spread all the way through her body and she allowed herself almost a whole minute of bliss before gently pushing Rachel away. "We can't," she said softly.

"I know," Rachel replied. "I'm sorry."

Quinn looked at the ground. "Santana will be home soon," she said. "You should probably go."

"I want to stay," Rachel said. "As friends. Please?"

Quinn kept looking at the floor, because she knew that if she looked at Rachel, she would cave. "No, you need to leave. I don't trust myself around you."

"Fine." Rachel stood and ran her fingers through her hair, looking dissatisfied. "When you're making your decision, remember who makes you happy, okay? I'm not saying it's me, I'm just saying...think about it."

Quinn shook her head slowly. "Rachel," she said, "I haven't been happy since I found out I was pregnant."

"Well maybe I could change that," Rachel said quietly.

* * *

><p>Santana's parents came home early from work and gathered both girls in the kitchen. They were both sitting at the table and Quinn took a seat across from them. Santana leaned against a counter with her arms crossed. "I called Quinn's mom this morning," Mrs. Lopez informed them.<p>

"I know," Santana said quickly. "What did she say?"

"She wanted to come by and get Quinn, but I convinced her not to. For now."

"We thought it would be better to give Quinn a day off," Mr. Lopez said. "But tomorrow, Quinn's going to go to school and then in the afternoon we're going to try to work things out."

Quinn looked desperately at Santana. "I can't go back home," she said. "It's going to be so awkward. She's going to make me feel terrible."

"Mom, Dad, you can't make her," Santana said. "Her mom kicked her out _twice_."

"No, that's not true at all, Santana," her mother replied. "Judy was adamant about that on the phone. She said that her husband was the one who wanted Quinn out last year, and she was devastated when Quinn ran away yesterday. She wants her daughter home." Mrs. Lopez looked pointedly at Quinn, and Quinn looked down at the ground, feeling guilty.

"We offered to have her come over here and talk to you," Mr. Lopez said to Quinn. "If you want, we can talk to her with you. Either way, we'll be here in the house and we won't let her do anything that makes you uncomfortable."

Quinn nodded. "Okay," she said. "I guess."

"I'm going to be there," Santana said. "I'll give her a piece of my mind."

"Santana, be quiet," her mother scolded. "Quinn will decide what she wants." The three Lopezes looked at Quinn expectantly and she shrank in her seat.

"Um, I guess I'll talk to her alone," she said.

"Are you sure?" Santana asked.

"Yeah," Quinn nodded. She was extremely touched that they were so willing to protect her, but she was worried that Judy would somehow embarrass her in front of Santana's family. "It'll be okay," Quinn assured them.

"Perfect. I want you both home right after school, then. Santana, did you bring Quinn her homework like I told you to?" Mrs. Lopez asked.

"Yeah," Santana said unhappily. "I have it."

"Okay." Mrs. Lopez stood. "Go do your homework. I'll see you girls at dinner."

Santana and Quinn trudged out of the room, both feeling glum. "Oh, I almost forgot," Santana said. "We've been paired up for the next glee assignment and Puck is your partner."

Quinn turned to Santana in alarm. "What?"

Santana shrugged apologetically. "Sorry," she said. "Mr. Schue is kind of an oblivious idiot."

"Maybe I could switch," Quinn said quietly. They reached Marco's room and Quinn threw herself onto the bed. Santana lingered by the doorway. "Could you switch with me? Who do you have?"

"Brittany," Santana said. She paused. "I can't be with Puck, it will be weird. Because of our fight on Saturday."

"Well then how about you switch with Puck and be my partner?" Quinn suggested. Santana shook her head.

"Brittany can't be with Puck, either."

"Santana, _I_ can't be with Puck," Quinn said. "Forget whatever happened on Saturday, this is more important."

A look of irritation crossed Santana's face, surprising Quinn. "It's been months," Santana said sharply. "I think you just need to do the damn assignment."

"Why are you being like this?" Quinn asked. "You know what I went through. Doesn't it mean anything to you?" Santana didn't answer. She looked at the ground and Quinn's face fell. "Fine. Have fun with Brittany."

"This isn't my problem, Quinn," Santana said quietly.

"I know," Quinn snapped. "So can you leave, please? I kind of want to be alone."

Santana glared at Quinn for several moments. "Fine," she said angrily. Then she left the room, slamming the door behind her. Quinn began to breathe sharply as she tried to keep herself from crying. Anxious thoughts of Puck, Beth, and Santana filled her mind and she struggled to force them out. She allowed her mind to wander to Rachel: Rachel's smile, the feel of her lips, the sound of her voice when she told Quinn how she felt about her. It was wrong to be in Santana's house fantasizing about someone else, but she couldn't help it. Rachel was like a drug to her. And sometime—sometime soon, unfortunately—she was going to have to do something about that.

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><p>Brittany dropped her backpack onto the floor of her bedroom and paced anxiously. She was freaking out, which was something she didn't do very often. Even while practicing with Mike, she had been unable to take her mind of what had happened. Brittany was usually so smooth in social situations, but something had gone wrong this afternoon. She had lost her game. Santana, she was pretty sure, had wanted to kiss her. And when Brittany realized that, everything had come crashing down. She didn't know what to do or what to say or even what to think, and it was driving her crazy.<p>

She left her room and wandered aimlessly down the hall. Emily was lying sprawled on her bed, her homework in front of her and her cell phone in her hand. Brittany stood in the doorway and watched as Emily texted. After a few moments, Emily looked up. "Yes?" she asked expectantly.

"I don't know," Brittany responded, shaking her head furiously.

Emily's brow furrowed. "...okay."

"Em, I'm so confused," Brittany said.

Emily, familiar with this type of behavior from Brittany, asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Yes." Brittany came into the room and sat down on Emily's desk chair. She nervously played with the hem of her shirt. "What do you do if you think you might like someone and you think they might like you too but they have a girlfriend?" she asked in one breath.

Emily thought for a moment. "You think he likes you, too?" Brittany nodded. "Well then he should break up with his girlfriend."

"I think that...they...might like their girlfriend, too, though. Maybe more than me. I'm not sure." Brittany spoke carefully, not wanting Emily to know who she was talking about.

"Well why do you think he likes you at all?" Emily asked.

Brittany swallowed. "We almost kissed."

Emily's eyes widened. "Wow. Nice."

"But then I freaked out and backed away and left." Brittany bit her lip. "And now I don't know what to do."

"Well," Emily said. "Don't do anything until he breaks up with his girlfriend. Otherwise everyone will hate you."

"But what if they're not _going_ to break up? What if I just ruined my chances now they're going to be together forever?" Brittany put her head in her hands. "Ugh, this is all so terrible and confusing."

"You must really like him," Emily said in surprise. "How long have you even known him? We've only been here a few weeks."

Brittany shrugged. "We just connected really well."

Emily smiled gently. "Look, I'm sure he will choose you over his girlfriend, just wait. Like, every guy

at our old school wanted you. Is she even pretty?"

Brittany shrugged. "Yeah. She's prettier than me, I think."

"Bullshit," Emily said. Brittany laughed. "Seriously, just keep doing your thing, act like you're going to find someone else, and he'll dump her in a second. And then you guys will start going out and then you are gonna bring him over for dinner so that I can meet him because he must be really hot."

Brittany stomach clenched slightly. "Yeah," she said quietly. "Really hot." Emily's plan sounded good, but there was still a pretty big problem that she had to deal with. One she knew Emily wouldn't be able to help with. "Thanks," she said. "You're a pretty awesome sister."

"And you totally suck," Emily replied. Her phone began to buzz. "Get out of my room, I have work to do."

"Whatever." Brittany stood to leave as Emily picked up her phone. She went back to her room, feeling slightly calmer than she had earlier. After all, she'd had boyfriends before. This was basically the same thing. Except for the part where Santana was a girl. And where Santana had a girlfriend. And where Brittany had never felt so _right_ around another person before. But except for those three things, it was no big deal. She could handle her feelings until she figured out exactly what they were.

Hopefully.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: I'm baaaaaack, finally. Okay so I realize that some of you are probably wondering when the heck Santana and Quinn are finally going to break up and the answer is...very soon. I just don't want to make anyone get mad and leave because it's taking too damn long. And also, I apologize so so much for the wait and I promise that it will not happen again. I started school so I have less time now but I will try to update AT LEAST once a week, and I hope to update even more often than that. Thanks to everyone who reviewed and sent me messages on here and on my Tumblr, I love getting everyone's feedback. I hope you enjoy!**

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><p>When they got to glee rehearsal, Mr. Schuester told them to go off with their partners and practice. Quinn remained in her chair as everyone stood, her eyes seeking out the person who she least wanted to see. Puck walked over and looked at her with nervous eyes. "Should we do this?" he asked.<p>

"No," Quinn replied firmly. "We're switching partners. I'm going to ask Mr. Schue."

Puck rubbed the back of his head anxiously. "I thought maybe this would be a good idea, though," he said. "You know, so we could like...fix everything."

"I don't want to fix anything, I want you to leave me alone," Quinn replied. She smoothed her skirt and stood up, trying not to let her face betray the hurt that she was feeling.

Suddenly Finn appeared at Puck's side. "Hey, are you guys gonna use this room or can we?" he asked. Quinn looked around. Everyone had gone to find a secluded place to practice, and Finn and Tina were the only ones left in the room. Quinn realized this was her last chance to switch. Maybe she could be with Tina.

"We'll go," Puck said before Quinn could speak. "You can take this room."

"Perfect." Finn jumped off the risers and went back to the piano, where Tina was sitting. Quinn lingered, hoping to say something, but Puck grabbed her hand firmly and led her to the door.

"Come on," he said. Resigned, Quinn followed him out the door of the choir room. Kurt and Mike were standing at the end of the hallway, and Quinn could already hear Mercedes's voice echoing from one of the unoccupied classrooms. "Um, where should we go?" Puck asked.

Quinn thought. Rachel had definitely taken the auditorium, and she was sure that Santana would have suggested the Cheerios locker room. "Outside," she said shortly, leading Puck down the hallway.

They walked in silence all the way to the double doors that served as the entrance to McKinley, outside onto the large concrete staircase that was perpetually covered with hardened gum and melted slushie. Quinn scoped out the cleanest spot she could find and sat down, stared fixedly over the tops of the dirty cars that lined the student parking lot. "What are you doing?" Puck asked.

"Passing the time until we can go back and pretend to have done something," Quinn replied.

Quinn heard Puck sigh and felt the warmth radiate from his body as he sat down next to her. "What happened with you?" he asked, hurt causing his voice to tremble with uncharacteristic vulnerability. "I mean, last year we were cool. I freaking told you I loved you."

"Yeah, well, saying it and actually acting like it are two different things." Quinn twisted the fabric of her shirt between her fingers, feeling all the anger of the previous months bubbling to the surface.

"What are you talking about?" Puck asked. "You knew how I felt about you."

"You blew me off!" Quinn said angrily. She turned to meet his eyes, glaring at him with all the malice that she could muster. "You were hooking up with Santana and probably half the girls in the school, and the rest of the time you were just dicking around and acting completely oblivious to the fact that I had a baby. A _baby_, Puck. I gave birth to a human being!"

"I know, I was there!" Puck replied loudly.

"Not afterwards, you weren't!" Quinn practically yelled in response. Her voice shook with anger as the words she had wanted to say for so long poured out of her. "You have _no_ idea how hard it was for me to give up a child. You don't know how long I spent crying over it."

"And you think it was easy for me?" Puck responded. "You know, you always seem to treat me like I don't have any feelings. Did you ever think that maybe I just have a different way of showing them? Because I cried, Quinn. I fucking cried."

Quinn was literally shaking now, but her eyes remained dry. She had shed too many tears over the last few days to cry anymore. "I thought you didn't care," she said. "How could you let me believe you didn't care? Santana visited me every day and you didn't even come once. Not _once_, Noah."

Puck stood up and kicked the stair hard. His eyes started to water from the pain and he spoke in a strangled voice. "I couldn't," he said. "I couldn't go over there and see what I had done to you. I couldn't see you without thinking of my daughter. I would have broken down sobbing the moment I walked in that door!" Puck rubbed his arm angrily across his eyes to dry them. "And I know you knew that."

"What's the worst that could have happened?" Quinn demanded. "What? I would have seen you cry? My mom would have seen you cry? All you would have done is shown us that you cared, and we wouldn't have hated you all this time for what you did!"

"I'm awful at dealing with this stuff, Quinn! You know that." Tears were now running down his face, but Quinn was not moved. This was nothing, she remembered, compared to what she had suffered through. Puck couldn't just get emotional once and make it all okay.

"Well I don't think that's an excuse," she said coldly. "You need to man up and learn to deal with your feelings, because I'm not interested in anyone who can't handle that simple task."

"Why not, your girlfriend's the exact same way," Puck spat. Quinn did not respond. He rubbed his eyes furiously sat down again on the step, looking off into the distance. After several deep breaths, he began to speak again, his voice quiet but strong. "For the record, I only hooked up with two girls while you were pregnant. _You_ were the one who swung back and forth between me and Finn and wouldn't give either of us the time of day. I didn't hook up with Santana nearly as many times as she pretends we did. And with Rachel...believe it or not, I was trying to start a real relationship with Rachel. You had made it clear you didn't want me in your life and I was trying to move on. So yeah, I wasn't exactly sleeping around."

"Wait, Rachel?" Quinn asked. Puck nodded. "You liked her?"

"Yeah, didn't you know?"

Quinn shook her head. "No, I didn't. Do you still?"

Puck shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe. Why do you care?" He looked at her through red-rimmed eyes, searching her like he had done so many times before.

"I don't."

"Okay." Puck sighed and looked at her. "I know this isn't enough, and maybe I can never do enough to show it, but Quinn, I'm _sorry_," he said. "I'm so, so sorry."

Quinn wanted to be mad, she desperately wanted to keep yelling, but her exhaustion prevented her from it. "I know," she said tiredly. "I know."

There was silence as the two of them sat side by side, letting the sun wash over them as they looked absently at nothing. Quinn didn't even think. Her mind was utterly blank, completely shut down. Her eyelids started to droop and she had almost started to fall asleep when Puck suddenly spoke. "You don't seem to be as happy as you were when you first started dating Santana."

"I guess I've been having some issues with a few things," she said. Puck waited expectantly but she didn't elaborate, not feeling like he deserved to know intimate details about her life.

"You know, I'm pretty perceptive," Puck said when it became clear that Quinn wasn't going to keep talking. "I know you and Santana barely spoke to each other at Azimio's party. And you didn't fool me just now when you were asking about Rachel."

An anxious feeling began to form in the pit of Quinn's stomach, but she forced herself to remain oblivious to it. "What are you saying?" she asked, rubbing her temples with her thumbs.

"I think you know what I'm saying." He looked at her, waiting for a reply, but Quinn refused to give it. "You need to stop punishing yourself," he said. Then, even more quietly, "You need to stop blaming yourself for all the things you've done that your mom doesn't approve of."

"I don't blame myself," Quinn said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Puck looked at her gently. "Then why won't you let yourself be with the person you actually want to be with?"

Quinn didn't have an answer for that.

* * *

><p>Santana sat down on the bench in the Cheerios locker room, feeling uncomfortable. The good memories she did associate with this place involved Quinn, and they certainly weren't appropriate for her to be thinking about at school. Especially in the presence of Brittany, who was currently leaning against a locker with her arms crossed. Her eyes were fixed on Santana, waiting. "So, I haven't exactly decided on a song, yet," Santana told her.<p>

"Me neither," Brittany replied. She continued to stare, and Santana shifted awkwardly in her seat.

"Um, so, do you want me to help you pick a song? I have my iPod."

"How did you know you were a lesbian?" Brittany asked suddenly.

Santana blinked, taken aback. This wasn't really what she wanted to talk about right now, but Brittany was still looking at her, so she just shrugged. "I mean, I had always kind of liked girls. I guess I just didn't know there was a label for the way that I felt. And then in ninth grade I saw this movie about these two girls who fell in love and, I don't know, it all sort of came together. I realized that I wanted to actually be _with_ a girl."

"But you still dated boys," Brittany pointed out.

"Yeah, I guess I thought—or hoped—I was bisexual," Santana said. "Because I never knew how much _more _I would feel with a girl. I just thought that I was choosing the wrong guys. But then when things started up between me and Quinn, I just knew that whatever happened, I didn't want to be with boys anymore. It's just not the same for me."

Brittany sat down next to Santana, looking thoughtfully. "So, like, you always knew."

"Yeah, I think I always did, deep down."

"Do you think that you could just suddenly fall in love with a guy, though? If you met someone who you just really...connected with, do you think that could happen?"

Santana thought hard about it. "Yeah, maybe," she said. "I just don't know. I think it happens to straight people with girls, so I guess it could happen to me with a guy."

Brittany nodded. "I think it could happen." Santana began to wonder if they were still talking about her or if they were talking about someone else.

"But you know, it's not the same for everyone," Santana continued suddenly. "My story, I mean. Quinn had no idea. She said she never felt like she was into girls at all. She just knew there was something missing with the guys in her life, and then suddenly it hit her in tenth grade and she was completely shocked."

Brittany began to play with her fingers. "That makes sense," she said quietly.

"And for some people it's just about the person," Santana said. "Quinn and I talk about this a lot. I think sexual orientation feels different for everyone."

"It feels different for me," Brittany murmured. As she spoke her confession, she seemed to relax visibly.

Santana watched Brittany closely and her heart began to beat faster. "Are you...confused?" she asked.

Brittany shrugged and looked at Santana with fear in her eyes. "I don't know," she said.

Santana felt frozen to the spot. She had no idea what to say. If Brittany was confused because of _her_...the idea was both awesome and frightening. "I think that for some people, sexuality is more fluid than for other people."

"What is fluid?" Brittany asked.

"Like, it changes more easily."

"Is it like that for you?"

Santana shook her head. "Not really," she said. "I think I know what I want."

Brittany nodded. "You want Quinn," she said.

"I said 'what,' not 'who,'" Santana pointed out.

"So you...don't want Quinn?"

Santana's stomach clenched. "I don't know," she said.

Brittany looked at her desperately. Santana could feel what Brittany was feeling, had a sense of what the next words out of Brittany's mouth would be, but she wanted to be wrong. She wasn't ready to deal with what it would mean if Brittany admitted to having feelings for her. "Santana..." Brittany began. Her eyes were filled with worry and Santana instinctively wanted to run.

"We need to go back," she said, standing up quickly. "Mr. Schue will wonder where we are." Her heart was racing and she felt like she was about to faint if she didn't get out of the room right this second.

"I don't think the period is over yet," Brittany said, but Santana had already taken several large steps towards the door. She pulled it open with shaky hands, not caring whether or not Brittany was following her. Once she was in the hallway, she walked quickly back to the choir room. Footsteps sounded on the floor several feet behind her and she forced herself to keep walking, staying ahead. Brittany seemed to sense her need for space because she did not try to catch up. Santana knew the period was not over, and she was not surprised when she reached the choir room and heard Finn's raspy voice coming through the door.

Respectfully, she and Brittany both waited outside the door, not saying a word to each other, until they heard the song end and the sound of Tina and Mr. Schuester's clapping. Brittany looked like she was about to suggest to Santana that they go back to practice, but Santana yanked open the door before Brittany could get a word out. She walked directly back to her seat, ignoring Mr. Schuester's confusion as Brittany lingered by the door. "Uh, do you girls want to perform in here?" Mr. Schuester asked. "If you don't mind Tina and Finn watching, I'd love to see what you've been working on."

Brittany looked over at Santana, questioning her. Santana crossed her arms in front of her chest and stared straight forward. She didn't trust herself to react appropriately around Brittany anymore. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Brittany register Santana's silence and look down at the floor. "I'll perform my song now, Mr. Schue," she said quietly.

Santana looked up in surprise, but Brittany had turned away. She didn't think that Brittany had actually prepared anything, but Brittany walked straight to the piano and whispered something to Brad. Brad nodded and she walked towards the center of the room, tugging at the hem of her shirt nervously. As the first notes sounded on the piano, Santana recognized the song. She sunk down in her chair, her cheeks burning, as Brittany began to sing.

_I hung up the phone tonight_

_Something happened for the first time_

_Deep inside, there's a rush, what a rush_

_'Cause the possibility_

_That you would ever feel the same way _

_About me, it's just too much, just too much_

Santana was surprised at the amount of pure emotion that was pouring out of the song. It reminded her of the time that Brittany had done her Cheerios tryout, and she tried not to resurrect the memory, lest she have the same embarrassing reaction. Checking to make sure that Tina, Finn, and Mr. Schuester were all watching Brittany attentively, she sank down even lower in her seat and looked at the floor.

_Why do I keep running from the truth?_

_All I ever think about is you_

_You've got me hypnotized, so mesmerized_

_And I've just got to know_

Santana chanced a look up at Brittany and found that the other girl's eyes were boring in to her. Santana longed to look away, but as Brittany's voice became desperate and pleading, Santana was stuck. They locked eyes helplessly as Brittany sang.

_Do you ever think, when you're all alone_

_All that we could be, where this thing could go_

_Am I crazy or falling in love_

_Is this really just another crush_

_Do you catch your breath when I look at you_

_Are you holding back, like the way you do_

_'Cause I've tried and tried to walk away_

_But I know this crush ain't going away_

_Going away_

Brittany's voice faltered at the end of the chorus and the piano stopped. She brushed a hand quickly across her eyes. "That's all I have so far," she whispered.

Tina and Finn clapped. "That was beautiful," Mr. Schuester said. "I really felt your emotion. Well done." Brittany gave him a small smile. All four of them looked up at Santana expectantly.

Santana forced a smile. "Great job," she said. Brittany's smile faltered and she shuffled back to her seat. Mr. Schuester stood up and looked at his watch.

"Everyone should be coming back now. I guess I'll go make sure," he said, standing up and leaving the room. When he was gone, Brittany looked up at Santana as though she wanted to start talking. Santana hurriedly wracked her brain for some sort of excuse to leave, but before she could, the door burst open and Rachel and Sam came in.

"Brittany!" Rachel said, immediately walking towards her. "We need to find a time for you to teach that dance to everyone. I thought maybe Thursday would be good."

"What? Yeah, okay," Brittany said, turning away. Santana gratefully pulled her phone out of her pocket, pressing numbers at random. By the time Brittany and Rachel had finished talking, Kurt and Mike had also returned and the room was too full for Brittany to start any type of private conversation. Santana watched out of the corner of her eye as Brittany shuffled back to her seat and sat down.

When the door opened next, Quinn and Puck entered the room, and Santana sat up in surprise. Puck's eyes were rimmed with red, and Quinn looked miserable. She walked straight towards Santana and flopped down in the chair next to her. "What happened?" Santana whispered. Quinn just shook her head and lay down against Santana's chest, closing her eyes lazily as Santana placed her arm around Quinn's shoulders. Mr. Schuester came back with the rest of the kids and talked to them briefly, but Santana didn't listen to him. She kept her arm around Quinn, knowing what she had to do. When they were dismissed, she told Quinn to go ahead. Brittany was standing by the door, looking at Santana expectantly, waiting for some comment on the song she had just sung. Santana looked up at her blankly.

"You're too nice," she said. "I can't be with someone like you. I'm sorry." Then she walked away quickly before she had time to look back at Brittany's face, knowing that the heartbreak she would see there would hurt worse than what she had just forced herself to say.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: I forgot to mention at the end of the last chapter that the song Brittany sings is _Crush _by David Archuleta. Also, thanks for reading!**

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><p>When Santana and Quinn got home, a familiar car was parked in Santana's space in the driveway. Quinn's heart sank. "She's here."<p>

Santana pulled up by the curb and looked at Quinn with concern. "You ready?" she asked.

Quinn nodded. "I guess." Santana killed the engine and the two of them sat in the car for several moments, neither one wanting to make the first move out of the car. Finally, Quinn screwed up her courage and undid her seat belt. "Let's go."

She and Santana got out and grabbed their backpacks, heading for the front door. As they got close, Santana's mom opened it. "Hi girls," she said solemnly. "We need to have a talk with you in the living room."

They followed her into the living room, where Santana's dad was standing by the wall. Judy was sitting on the couch, but as soon as the girls came into view, she sprang up and came towards Quinn. Quinn didn't even have time to resist before her mother was wrapping her in a hug. She remained stiff in her mother's arms and Judy pulled away, looking at her sadly. "Thank you for giving me a chance," she said quietly. Quinn just nodded, not feeling able to speak.

"Why don't you both sit down?" Mrs. Lopez said. Santana quickly took one of the chairs and Mr. Lopez moved towards the other, forcing Quinn to sit on the couch by her mom. She tried to put as much distance between them as she could, still unsure about her mother's intentions. Everyone looked around awkwardly, not sure who should speak first. Finally, it was Judy who broke the ice.

"Quinn," she said, turning eagerly towards her daughter. "I just want you home. I'll do whatever it takes to make you feel welcome enough to come home."

Quinn looked down at the floor and didn't answer. She wanted to go home, too. But it barely even felt like home anymore. "Quinn doesn't want to just be tolerated," Santana said, her voice bitter. "She wants to feel loved."

"I do love Quinn!" Judy protested. Mrs. Lopez opened her mouth to scold Santana, but Judy continued before she could say anything. "Sweetie, I know I haven't been acting like it," she said. "But I've had a few days to think it over and it's been agonizing for me not to have you in my life. I don't care about your sexual orientation or that you're dating Santana or anything. I just want my daughter back." Her lip began to tremble and Quinn looked away, terrified of seeing her mother cry. She didn't want that to influence her decision. Even though she didn't know what her decision was just yet.

"You insulted me," she said quietly, the memories of their fight making it hard for her to forgive her mother. "And Santana."

"Look, I think we need to maybe focus on that for a minute," Santana's dad said sternly. "Our daughter...can be quite rambunctious when she wants to, but she is _not_ a bad influence. She's always been especially caring where it concerns Quinn, we can all vouch for that."

Judy looked at Quinn for confirmation and Quinn nodded. She saw Mrs. Lopez move towards Santana and give her shoulder a squeeze. It made Quinn's heart ache to see how supportive they were being of their daughter. "Well," Judy said. "I think what I said during our fight may have come out wrong. It really had nothing to do with Santana. It was more about the fact that Quinn had lied to me."

"Oh yeah? What if she had been secretly dating Finn? Would you have gotten mad then?" Santana snapped.

"Mija, stop," Mrs. Lopez said. She turned to Judy. "Of course, it's perfectly reasonable for you to expect Quinn to be truthful with you. But obviously that wasn't the only thing Quinn was upset about, or she wouldn't have run out. I mean, I've gotten mad at Santana for lying but she's never felt like she wasn't welcome in our home."

"Well, Quinn obviously interpreted my words the wrong way," Judy said defensively. "I never told her that I had a problem with Santana specifically."

"Well clearly that's what Quinn felt like," Mrs. Lopez said more forcefully than before. "So if you made her feel like her girlfriend was under attack, I can't exactly blame her for wanting to-"

"You weren't there," Judy interrupted. "You don't know what it was like...how teenage girls can be...Quinn gets so sensitive sometimes and I just..."

"You implied that I was confused." Everyone became quiet and looked at Quinn as she spoke. Trying to ignore the eyes on her, she took a deep breath and forced herself to say what had been bothering her the most since her fight with her mother. "You said that you didn't think I was even gay and that Santana had pressured me into dating her. You said you thought that I still liked boys."

"Well, was I wrong?" Judy asked. "I'm not going to claim to know what's going on in your head. If you are actually...if you actually don't like boys, just tell me. We didn't need to fight over that."

"I _did_ tell you," Quinn said, clenching her fists against the fabric of the sofa. "I told you four months ago. And it wasn't even about that anyway. You don't respect me."

Judy gave a short laugh that sounded almost like a cry of pain. "Of course I respect you. Where on Earth would you get the idea that I don't?"

"Maybe when you kicked her out of the house," Santana muttered.

"You think I'm just a confused child!" Quinn exclaimed. "Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to come out to you? Do you know what kind of courage it took? Courage that _you_," she smacked her hand angrily against the side of the couch, "will never have!"

"It's normal for teenage girls to be confused!" Judy said, looking like she was about to cry again. "I was reaching out to you. So you're sure you're a lesbian—great! I won't challenge that fact again."

"The fact that you even challenged it in the first place just shows how ignorant you are!" Quinn stared at her mother, breathing heavily. Judy did not respond. The entire Lopez family looked between them awkwardly—even Santana was at a loss for words. Finally, Mrs. Lopez spoke quietly.

"It seems like maybe you and Quinn aren't exactly on the same page. Maybe you just need to talk to someone. You could see if there's a chapter of PFLAG..."

"I'm sorry, what?" Judy asked.

"PFLAG," Mrs. Lopez repeated. "Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. It could be like a support group for you."

"I don't need support," Judy said, looking offended. "I know how to take care of my daughter."

"It could be educational, though," Mrs. Lopez continued. "You would come to see that Quinn is really no different than anyone else...you know, that she's the same as she always was. When we looked back on it," Mrs. Lopez chuckled, "we could tell that Santana had always been attracted to girls. So really, the fact that she told us about it made no difference at all."

"But Quinn _has_ changed," Judy said, massaging her temples. "She was a good girl, she always did what she was supposed to. And when this whole thing happened...she stopped going to church, she would put off her homework. And she started sneaking around and lying."

"I stopped going to church when I got pregnant," Quinn said.

"And she was never attracted to girls before," Judy continued, ignoring her. "She always loved Finn so much. I remember when she begged me to let her put up that poster of Zac Efron on her wall. And why would she have...you know...gotten pregnant...if she didn't like boys?"

"Because I _thought_ I liked boys, Mom," Quinn explained, trying to be patient. "I thought all girls did. And why would I ever have questioned my orientation, it's not like you or Dad ever acknowledged that gay people existed."

"I know but..." A tear slipped out of Judy's eye and she wiped it away quickly. "It's just hard," she said in a broken voice. "I mean, I've already told you that I will embrace you no matter what. But I _know_ you, Quinn, better than you know yourself. And I saw how you were with your boyfriends and I...I just don't know."

"Santana had boyfriends, too," Mr. Lopez said patiently. "But we can just tell that she's happier with Quinn. We know that the two of them are right for each other." Quinn shifted uncomfortably in her seat, trying not to think of Rachel. "I mean, can't you see that this is what makes Quinn happy?"

"Look, I think Santana is great," Judy said tearfully. "I've known her for a long time, and she's always been a little different. She was so nice to girls, so protective. She talked about football with Russell and she liked playing video games with Noah. She once tried to sneak a _Playboy _into our house..." Judy smiled fondly at the memory, tears still glistening in her eyes. "I have no problem whatsoever with her sexual orientation. But Quinn isn't like that. She never was."

"It's different for everybody, Mom," Quinn said. "You can't use the fact that I'm not like Santana as proof that I'm not gay." Quinn would have added that she also had managed to hide a few copies of _Playboy_ under her mattress, but she didn't think that her mother would appreciate it.

"If there had been any indication, though," Judy said, wiping at her eyes. "Any at all...before you and Santana became intimate, did you ever even think that you were attracted to girls?"

"I had wondered," Quinn began.

"Wait, are you saying that I _made _her like this?" Santana asked angrily. "It was a completely mutual decision. I didn't make her do anything."

"Calm down," Mrs. Lopez said. "I don't think that's what she was implying."

But Quinn knew that it was what her mother was implying, since it was the same thing she had said at the house before Quinn left. "I don't think you made anything happen," Judy said to Santana. "I just think that Quinn may be a little bit confused, and I don't think it's fair to you if she continues to date you without stepping back to evaluate her feelings."

"You think she doesn't love me?" Santana challenged.

"I didn't say _that_, I said that maybe she isn't exactly _attracted _to you in the same way that you are to her."

Quinn was horrified. How could her mother say such a thing to Santana, in front of everyone? Santana's parents seemed too shocked to speak, but Santana had full control of her vocal chords and Quinn could see her hand trembling with anger. "So then what do you think, that I'm, like, creeping on her? You think that I'm some kind of sexual predator?"

"No!" Judy said, her eyes widening in alarm.

"Because let me tell you something," Santana continued. "Lesbian sex is pretty hard to pull of when one person isn't into it. Let's just say that if she wasn't turned on, I would have noticed."

Quinn heart dropped into her stomach. "You had _sex_?" Judy shrieked. "Where? In my house?"

"So what?" Santana said loudly. "It's not like you didn't know she was sexually active! Didn't the baby bump tip you off?"

"Santana, stop," her mom said quietly, but it was clear that the request was only half-hearted.

"Maybe if you didn't treat Quinn like a child, you would realize that she's actually a lot closer to being an adult!"

"Don't tell me how to raise my daughter!" Judy said, pointing a shaking finger at Santana. "It's not your job to make sure Quinn is growing up right." She rounded on Quinn, her eyes blazing. "Did she force you to have sex with her?"

"What?" Quinn asked in outrage. "Of course not! Are you insane?"

"I think she might be," Santana said.

"And did you know that this was going on?" Judy asked the Lopezes angrily. "Did you allow it?"

"Of course not," Mrs. Lopez said quickly. "But kids will be kids. We always supervised them, we made them keep their door open...but it's not like we can watch them every second of the day." For the first time, she looked like she had lost control of the situation, and Quinn began to worry that her mother was gaining the upper hand. "We've talked to Santana about this. She knows how to be safe."

"If we ever believed Santana was being disrespectful, we would have put an end to their relationship immediately," Mr. Lopez said, worrying his lip between his teeth.

"Well, I would say we found the one thing we agree on!" Judy's hair was coming out of its tight bun as she stood from the couch, looking around the room wildly. "Come on, Quinn," she said. "We're leaving. You're forbidden to see Santana."

"Mom!" Quinn stood up. "You said you would do anything to get me to come home. This isn't exactly what I had in mind."

"The circumstances have changed," Judy said, her chest heaving. "I can't decide who you have feelings for but it is certainly within my power to stop you from having underage sex and I intend to do just that."

"But..." Quinn looked to Santana and her parents for support. Mrs. Lopez looked sadly back.

"She's right, girls," Mrs. Lopez said quietly. "It would be irresponsible for us to allow it."

"But Mom," Santana said. Then she turned to her dad. "Come on, you guys," she begged. "You were teenagers once."

Quinn could tell that the Lopezes didn't necessarily agree with Judy, but they saw no way out. "Maybe we could change the rules a little bit," Mr. Lopez suggested with a shrug. "An earlier curfew, perhaps..."

"Oh please, you know we'll find a way to get around it," Santana said. "Come on, this is pointless. You're being unrealistic."

"You know what?" Judy stepped closer to Santana's chair, looking at her dangerously. "I will not stand around and listen to this. You are not going to be defiling my daughter anymore. She lost her virginity when she was too young and now she is confused about her feelings. That is why I have always asked her to wait until marriage. Because this," she waved between Santana and Quinn furiously, "is what happens when you allow your hormones to dictate your romantic thoughts."

Quinn stomped on the floor in frustration. "How many times do I have to tell you, I like girls!" she yelled. "You want me to spell it out for you? I like them! I like everything about them! I hate penises! Is that what you need to hear?"

"Santana's messing with your head!" Judy said. "You admitted to me yourself that you've never liked any girl besides her."

"Well, I lied!" Quinn shouted back.

"Oh yeah?" Judy turned on her. "Who else have you liked, then?"

"Rachel!" Quinn blurted out before she could stop herself. "I like Rachel!" Then she whirled around, hurrying out of the room before she could see the shock on everyone's face and realize what she had just done.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Sorry this is slightly shorter than usual, I'll make it up next time :)**

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><p>Quinn didn't know how long she sat on the floor in Santana's room, staring at the wall. She didn't want to get up and look at the clock, because if she did, she would become conscious of what was happening, and then she might start to regret her outburst. Since her conversation with Puck, she had realized that the best thing to do was end things with Santana before the situation got worse. But that didn't mean that she had been planning to tell Santana in front their parents. It was bad enough that she was breaking up with her best friend, but now she had just thrown humiliation into the mix. Quinn sat immobile, feeling the ache of the cold floor against her leg and wondering what everyone downstairs was talking about.<p>

Finally the door opened and Santana poked her head inside. Quinn's breath caught in her throat. She had been expecting tears or anger, but she certainly didn't think that Santana would ever look at her with such detachment on her face. "Your mom is leaving," Santana said simply. "And you're going with her."

Quinn nodded. In the back of her mind, she had been preparing to go home ever since her talk with Puck. She pulled herself to her feet and looked at the girl in front of her that she still loved so much. "Santana..." she began.

"Don't," Santana said quickly, and pain flashed across her eyes. But then it was gone, replaced by the same cold nothingness as before. "Please leave."

"I never wanted this to happen," Quinn said, and before she could stop herself, she started to cry. "I didn't ask to feel this way about Rachel, I just did."

"You know, if you had just broken up with me, I would understand," Santana said, anger creeping into her voice. "But for _her_? Quinn, you know that I hate her. How could you do this to me?"

"It has nothing to do with you!" Quinn begged. "It's just her...the two of us...we just have some sort of connection, I can't explain it. Believe me, San, this is not the way I would have planned any of it."

"And now she gets to walk around feeling all superior because she took something from me that was mine. How do you expect me to even look at her without wanting to punch her in the face?" Santana's chest was shaking and Quinn couldn't tell if she was going to hit her or break down completely. Both options were terrifying.

"Please," Quinn said, reaching out a hand and trying to place it on Santana's shoulder. Santana shrugged it off angrily. "This isn't about you," Quinn said. "It's me, it's all me. Rachel and I both feel terrible and she's not going to walk around bragging..."

"Oh really?" Santana said. "_Rachel and I_? Have you two discussed this or something? Did you talk to one another about the best way to break my heart?"

"No." Quinn winced. She hated to think that anything of Santana's was breakable. Suddenly, Santana let out a hollow laugh. "What?" Quinn asked.

"When I sent her over here to find you, after your mom kicked you out," she said, her voice still shaking with mirthless laughter. It was a terrible sound. "You two must have loved that, huh? How _stupid_ Santana must be to send Rachel over for a booty call. In her own house!"

"We—we never-"

"Yeah right," Santana said with a scoff. "Don't lie to me. Seriously, it just pisses me off even more."

"We just...we kissed," Quinn admitted. "But that's it! I would never...I told Rachel that it couldn't happen, that I had to figure things out with you first."

Santana looked down at the ground for a long time, and Quinn could tell she was struggling to keep herself under control. She wanted to tell Santana to let it out, to cry and yell and do whatever it was that Quinn deserved because this was worse. But she didn't speak. Finally, Santana looked up, and in a broken voice she said, "Do you realize what you're throwing away? Not that you're getting it back," she cleared her throat, "but do you realize what we had? We had it made. We thought coming out in Lima was easy." She gazed past Quinn at her window, and Quinn turned. She could see Santana's yard and the one next door, where Brittany and her sister were jumping on the trampoline. As they watched, Brittany did a flip and her sister cheered. The faint echo of their laughter carried into Santana's room. "It's not easy," Santana continued quietly.

"It's not like anyone can turn back time," Quinn said gently. "It's not like you have to come out again, alone. I was there with you for that. I'm not going anywhere."

Santana shook her head quickly and Quinn could tell that she was holding back tears. "It'll be different, though. These freaks, they're just waiting for their chance to do something to us. We've known Kurt was gay since the first day of kindergarten when he came to school in a dress, but that doesn't stop him from getting a slushie in the face every _single_ day." Santana's voice started to shake and she took a deep breath. "If we're not together, they won't be scared anymore."

"Is that enough reason to stay in a relationship that you don't really want to be in?"

Santana looked at Quinn. "I _do_ want to be in this relationship," she said bitterly. "Or at least, I did."

"But not for the right reasons," Quinn said. Santana didn't respond, and her eyes wandered back to the window. "We both want something else," Quinn said, so quietly that she wasn't even sure Santana could hear her.

After several moments of silence, Santana turned back to Quinn. "Rachel already gets slushied all the time," she said. "If she starts dating a girl, it's just going to get worse. And you're going to get it, too."

"What about you?" Quinn asked.

Santana shrugged. "I'll probably be okay. At least most of the time. They don't mind gay so much if it's not being forced down their throats. If I'm single, they won't really have to think about it." Her words were optimistic, but Quinn could see fear in her eyes. She stepped forward and took Santana's hand.

"I have to go," she said. "My mom is probably waiting for me."

"Yeah, you should go," Santana said, her voice suddenly becoming cold again. She tried to pull her hand away, but Quinn held fast.

"I just want you to know that I would take a slushie in the face every day to be able to hold her hand in the hallway. I'd be like Mercedes and wear a poncho to school if it meant that I could kiss her whenever I wanted to. Because I know that there's always going to be at least one person to help me clean up."

Santana swallowed hard. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because someday, you're going to have that feeling. And you'll realize that it's the most amazing and liberating feeling in the world, and you'll wonder what you were so scared of in the first place. You'll be mad at yourself for wasting all this time." She gave Santana's hand a squeeze and let go of it, heading towards the door.

"Quinn," Santana pleaded suddenly, and Quinn turned quickly. Santana had finally succumbed to tears and her voice sounded desperate and scared. "I..." She shook her head and wiped her eyes. "I don't have anyone to help me clean up."

Quinn smiled sadly. "You'll always have me, S," she said.

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><p>"So I found a job," Mrs. Pierce said as they sat down to dinner. "I'm starting in a couple days."<p>

"Congratulations, Mom!" Emily said. "What is it?"

"I'm going to work as a secretary at a school called Dalton Academy," she said.

"It's a very prestigious school," Mr. Pierce said, looking at his wife proudly. "The pay is better than we thought it would be. Even though it is a bit of a commute."

"That's awesome," Emily said. Brittany quickly forced a smile and looked back down at her plate. She was happy for her mom, obviously, but her enthusiasm was slightly diminished by the fact that she couldn't seem to get Santana's words out of her head. Brittany had never been so blatantly rejected before, and she was surprised at how much it had hurt.

"We actually were thinking," Mrs. Pierce said. "I think it might be time to finally get Brittany that car."

"Great," Brittany said, and her voice stuck in her throat. She coughed and reached for her glass of water.

"No fair!" her sister said. "What do I get?"

"You'll get the car when Brittany goes to college," Mrs. Pierce said. "I think that's pretty fair."

"You'll live, Emily," Mr. Pierce said. He turned to his wife. "Tell us about Dalton."

"Well, it's a boarding school for boys," she said. "And it's _beautiful_. Everything is immaculate, and it's like...it's like Hogwarts!"

"A boys boarding school? Interesting," Emily said. "Maybe I can come visit you at work."

"Don't even think about it," said Mr. Pierce, only half-joking. "I know what goes on in those high school boys' heads."

"They do have to wear handsome little uniforms," Mrs. Pierce said with a laugh. "I'm sure Brittany would like to stop by occasionally."

The Pierces all looked at Brittany, who was now poking at her dinner with the wrong end of her fork. "What's wrong, Britt?" her dad asked.

Brittany looked up quickly. "Sorry," she said. "Were you saying something to me?"

"I said that there are lots of eligible bachelors at Dalton," her mom said with a little wink. "If you want to come by and pick one out."

"Oh." Brittany didn't crack a smile. She looked back down on her plate and speared a potato. "Maybe."

"It was just a joke, honey," Mrs. Pierce said with concern. When Brittany didn't respond, Emily spoke up.

"She already likes someone at her school." Their parents looked over at Emily, who looked proud to be the source of such important information. Brittany glared at her.

"Who is he?" Mrs. Pierce asked. "Is it the boy you went to that party with? I thought you didn't have a very good time."

Brittany didn't say anything, so Emily continued, ignoring her sister's angry gaze. "It's someone else," Emily said. "She won't tell me who."

"It doesn't matter, anyway," Brittany snapped. "It didn't work out."

"All the more reason to come visit me at Dalton!" Mrs. Pierce said, in an attempt to lighten the mood. When it didn't work, she reached a comforting hand across the table and placed it on Brittany's arm. "I'm sorry, honey," she said. "You should have told us you were feeling sad."

"Who is this guy, anyway?" Mr. Pierce said with a trace of annoyance. "What doesn't he like you for?"

"It's not his fault, Dad," Brittany said. "He has a girlfriend and doesn't want to leave her." She wasn't sure why she was playing along with their game, but she had a natural inclination to share things with her family and she didn't want to stop, even if she couldn't tell them Santana's true identity. Plus, it felt good to get it off her chest. "They've been friends since they were little and now they're in love so..." she shrugged, trying to keep her emotions in check. If she pretended to be nonchalant about the whole thing, she wouldn't have to think about the fact that she'd been on the verge of tears ever since glee rehearsal.

"Oh sweetheart, these kinds of things happen," Mrs. Pierce said comfortingly. "Maybe it wasn't meant to be. You'll find someone else."

"He must have one hell of a girlfriend," Mr. Pierce said. "Has he seen you dance? And sing?"

"Yeah," Brittany said quietly. "His girlfriend can too, though."

"Is she in the glee club?" Mrs. Pierce asked interestedly.

Brittany paused. She realized that she was on the verge of revealing too much information. "Uh, yeah, she is."

"What's her name?" Emily asked.

Brittany sighed. She had dug herself into a hole with this little half-lie. "Her name is...Tina," she said, saying the first person that popped into her head.

Emily's eyes narrowed. "I'll look her up," she said. "And find out what she's got that you don't have."

"Please don't," Brittany pleaded. "Please, I just...I don't want this to be a thing. I'm gonna get over it."

"That's the spirit," Mr. Pierce said. "You don't need boys, anyway. You should focus on your schoolwork."

"Oh Brian, she doesn't want to hear that," Mrs. Pierce chided. Then she smiled lovingly at her oldest daughter. "My offer still stands," she said. "You're free to visit me at Dalton whenever you want. But your dad is right, you don't need boys."

"You've got that right," Brittany said, quietly enough that neither of her parents could hear her.

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><p><strong>AN: Yeah, the Dalton thing will be relevant...just you wait :)**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Thanks for everyone's reviews! I just thought I would give everyone a heads up: I'm still planning at least 10 more chapters to this story :/ It just worked out that way, with all of the other plots I wanted to introduce. Hopefully there will be enough drama so that it doesn't seem like things are progressing too slowly, but I just don't want people flaming me because they think I'm holding off on Brittana for too long. Patience! I love you guys, thanks for reading**

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><p>Quinn spent the rest of the week feeling alone. She went back to her mother's house and an awkward silence descended over them. Judy did not seem to know how to react to Quinn's outburst about Rachel, and so she did not ask what had happened between her and Santana, though by her face Quinn could tell that she suspected the worst. Quinn normally would have been overjoyed at her mother's unwillingness to interfere in her personal life, but without Santana, she felt like she could really use someone to vent to. Twice during dinner, she opened her mouth to talk about her feelings, only to feebly say something like, "Pass the chicken." Depression quickly set in as Quinn began to wonder if she and her mother were destined to be strangers forever, and she suddenly realized how much she relied on Santana. Even if they weren't meant to be together, her best friend <em>had<em> acted as a buffer against Judy's crazy behavior for almost Quinn's entire life. Without her, Quinn felt a kind of emptiness that was akin to how she felt when she gave up her baby.

She drove herself to school for the first time since her pregnancy, and the familiar route felt strange when she watched it through the driver's side of the windshield. At school, she walked through the hallways alone, missing the feeling of Santana holding her hand and whispering the snarky comments in her ear. Even though she had promised they could remain friends, Santana didn't really seem to feel the same way, and she avoided Quinn in the halls and looked pointedly in the other direction during glee rehearsals. It wasn't that Quinn regretted breaking up with Santana—she knew it had to be done—but she wasn't used to operating without a friend by her side and now she had no one. The rest of the school certainly noticed the absence of the resident power couple, but out of respect or fear they did not approach Quinn and ask her what was going on. On Monday, Quinn was glad to be left alone, but by Friday, she was desperate for human interaction. Not a single person had asked her why she and Santana were sitting on opposite ends of the room. Nobody asked if they had broken up or were just in a fight. Quinn's only comfort was that Santana was feeling similarly lonely, but that didn't seem to be true either—at the end of rehearsal on Friday afternoon, she saw Puck place a comforting hand on Santana's shoulder. Santana's face remained stoic but she leaned slightly into the touch, and as Quinn walked past them to leave, Puck looked at her in what could only be described as disappointment. Santana must have told him that Quinn had cheated. With a heavy feeling in her stomach, she hurried out the door, going straight to Cheerios practice without a word to anyone.

Thankfully, Sue had been too concerned with preparing them for the next football game to notice the occasional glares that Santana shot Quinn during practice. Quinn _was _grateful for that, since she dind;t think she could handle Sue singling her out in front of everyone. She was sure she would start crying, and if she did, she would probably be off the team in a matter of seconds. The rest of the girls, however, seemed to sense her vulnerability and gave her a wide berth during practice. Only Brittany had remained by her throughout the week, and Friday's practice was no exception. As soon as Quinn walked into the gym, Brittany hurried towards her eagerly. "Hi, Quinn," she said.

"Hey." Quinn dropped her bag and leaned down into a stretch. Brittany's attitude towards her had earned them both several glares from Santana. Quinn hadn't really registered or cared about the fact that Santana and Brittany also seemed to be in some sort of fight, but now that she really thought about it, it seemed odd. Brittany sat down next to her and reached forward to touch the toes of her outstretched legs. Sue wasn't there yet, so Quinn dropped down beside her and said in a low voice, "Is something going on between you and Santana?"

Brittany remained silent for a few moments as another Cheerio walked past them. "Is something going on between _you_ and Santana?" she asked when she was sure they would not be overheard.

Quinn warily kept one eye on the girl in question as she responded. "We had a little bit of a fight," she said vaguely.

"I heard rumors that you guys broke up," Brittany whispered. "Are they true?"

Quinn looked down. "I don't want to talk about it," she said. She knew that if she confirmed it, Brittany would ask why, and she didn't think she could bear it if the one person who seemed to admire her found out that she was a cheater.

"Of course. I'm sorry," Brittany said. After a beat, she said, "We had a bit of a fight too."

"I guess she's just in a fighting mood," Quinn said, sounding bitter before she could stop herself. She knew that she was entirely to blame for the end of her relationship, but she had felt angry over the past week with nowhere to release it. And the image of Santana converting Puck to her side, when Puck was the one that had supported her decision to be with Rachel, had really sent her over the edge.

Brittany unexpectedly reached a hand over and placed it comfortingly on Quinn's leg. "Do you think you can give me a ride home?" she asked. "My mom just started a new job and told me to ask Santana for a ride but..." she shrugged.

"Of course," Quinn said, feeling a sudden rush of warmth. It felt good to be needed again.

Sue walked into the gym at that moment, megaphone in hand. "Get up!" she said. "No time for a warmup, we're running this routine until we drop. We've got a game tomorrow."

The practice was brutal, as it was the day before a pretty big game against McKinley's top rivals, but somehow it was less painful than Quinn thought it would be. Brittany smiled at her encouragingly as she went up for a lift, and even Santana's glares seemed to come less frequently. By the time they had finished, the endorphins seemed to actually be helping her for the first time. "Good practice, Q," Sue said as Quinn helped her collect the pom poms. "I expect the same enthusiasm from you at the game tomorrow."

"Of course," Quinn said, closing the box that read 'Property of Cheerios.' Several of the girls who were still packing up looked at Quinn jealously as they left, knowing that praise from Sue came very infrequently. Brittany, however, gave her a small thumbs up as Quinn approached her. They exited the gym together and walked across the field.

"Coach was really proud of you today," Brittany said.

"Yeah." Quinn shrugged. "I don't know why, though. I mean, it's not like I did any better than I've done in the past."

"I think she sensed you've been sad all week," Brittany said. "Maybe she's just being nice." At Quinn's disbelieving look, she added, "Nice for her, I mean."

"Maybe," Quinn said. "I hadn't thought of that." Sue was known for being caustic, but she did feel pride and compassion in her own way. She would never approach anyone directly to talk about 'feelings,' but she might offer a little bit of encouragement under the guise of professionalism. Quinn smiled inwardly. There was a lot about Sue that people tended to overlook.

"I'm so tired," Brittany said. "It's been a long week."

"Tell me about it," Quinn said.

"At least our halftime dance tomorrow will be perfect," she said. "But I'm glad Rachel canceled me and Mike's extra rehearsal today. I don't think I could handle it."

Quinn's ears perked up at Rachel's name. Since she and Santana broke up, she had avoided Rachel like the plague, not wanting to hurt her ex-girlfriend by spending any time with the girl she had been cheating on her with. It had been easy to become numb to her crush, or so she had thought, but it was clear she was not over it when even the mention of Rachel sent shivers down Quinn's spine. "Extra practice?" she asked innocently.

"Yeah, she wants us to work on choreography for Invitationals so that we can teach it to you guys," Brittany said. "Even though it's, like, a month away."

"That sounds like Rachel," Quinn said with a hint of nostalgia. "But why did she cancel?"

"She said she wasn't feeling well and wanted to go home right after school." Brittany shrugged. "She's been acting a little off this whole week. I guess it's just a bad one for everybody."

"I guess." Quinn's stomach hurt with sadness. She knew she was responsible for Rachel 'not feeling well,' and if she had caused Rachel to cancel a rehearsal—which Rachel considered to be more important than almost anything—Quinn must have really hurt her. But what could she do? Every time she considered talking to Rachel, she became so guilt-ridden that the idea died immediately. She knew she needed to fill Rachel in, to tell her about the breakup, but a little voice in her head kept saying that it was too soon. Except she wasn't sure how much longer she could wait.

She drove Brittany home quietly, but it was a comfortable silence. Quinn was relieved that Brittany didn't ask for more details about Santana—for some reason, it seemed like Brittany didn't want to think about her, and that was perfectly fine with Quinn. As Quinn turned onto Brittany's street, she saw that Santana's car was not in the driveway, and she let out a breath that she hadn't realized she'd been holding in. Her one concern about driving Brittany home had been possible contact with Santana, but Santana was clearly taking her time getting home from practice. As Quinn pulled up to let Brittany out, she started to feel lonely again. Clearly sensing her sadness, Brittany asked, "Do you want to come inside for a little bit?"

"Sure," Quinn replied, turning off her engine. Even though she didn't know Brittany very well, she didn't think she could handle going home to her mother just yet. Brittany led the way inside and to the living room, where a younger girl was sitting on the couch.

"Quinn, this is Emily. Emily, Quinn," Brittany said. "Do you want something to eat? I'm starving."

"Sure," Quinn said, sitting on the edge of the couch. She turned towards Emily. "Hi."

"Hey," Emily replied. She was watching an old episode of _One Tree Hill_.

"I'll be right back," Brittany said, disappearing into the kitchen. There was a moment of awkward silence as the two girls half-watched the T.V. Then Emily turned to Quinn and looked at her uniform.

"Are you one of Brittany's friends from the Cheerios?" she asked.

"Yeah," Quinn said.

"That's cool. I wish I could be a cheerleader."

"Can't you?" Quinn asked.

Emily shook her head. "Well, I'm only in eighth grade. But also, I can't dance."

"It's not all that great most of the time, anyway," Quinn assured her.

After a pause, Emily asked, "How has Brittany been doing recently?"

"Um." Quinn was taken aback. "Well, I think she had a fight with Santana but she seems okay."

Emily nodded. Then she looked around, checking that they were alone, before leaning in conspiratorially. "Brittany likes this guy. But he has a girlfriend."

"Oh?" Quinn asked in surprise. She hadn't realized that Brittany liked anyone, but then again, there was never a reason for Brittany to tell her.

"Yeah, so she's been sad all week."

"That's too bad," Quinn said. "I'm surprised, a lot of guys in the school are interested in her."

"I guess this guy isn't," Emily said. "Which is weird because I looked up his girlfriend on Facebook and she isn't as pretty as Brittany is." She shrugged. "Except she's probably smarter. No offense to my sister or anything."

Quinn laughed and then suddenly felt bad. "Brittany's smart. Just in a different way than most people."

"Maybe," Emily said. "Anyway, she doesn't know that I know who the guy is, but I found him. She told me his girlfriend's name and I was able to do a little internet stalking." She smiled proudly. "His name is Mike Chang."

Quinn's eyes widened. "Mike? Brittany likes him?"

"Yes but _don't_ tell her I told you," Emily said. "She'll be mad. But yeah, she likes him."

"I guess I'm not all that surprised," Quinn said. "I mean, they're both dancers and they've been rehearsing a lot together."

Emily nodded. "Yeah, I figured out that he is a dancer. I think that's why she likes him. Also, I checked out his pictures. He's got a great bod."

Quinn laughed. This girl looked so much like Brittany, and yet they were completely different. She sort of reminded Quinn of Santana, although Quinn regretted thinking of Santana the moment the thought crossed her mind. "You're a pretty experienced stalker," she pointed out.

Emily shrugged. "Whatever. Just don't tell anyone."

"Sure thing," Quinn said. Brittany suddenly appeared in the doorway, holding a bag of chips and a bowl of grapes.

"What were you guys talking about?" she said, walking forward and placing the food on the coffee table.

Emily reached forward and grabbed a grape. "We were talking about _One Tree Hill_," she said casually.

"Oh, cool," Brittany said, sitting down between them. "I love this show so much."

"Me too," Quinn admitted as Emily grabbed the remote to turn up the volume.

Quinn ended up staying at the Pierces for dinner, and she was surprised at how much she enjoyed their company. She hadn't really spent too much time with anyone's family besides Santana's and Rachel's, and it was cool to be around different people. Plus, it was a nice break from her mother, who had sent Quinn a text around six telling her to order pizza since she was going out to a book club meeting. Quinn didn't even bother telling Judy that she was eating at a friend's house. She doubted that her mother would even care.

Quinn left at eight-thirty, wanting to get home before her mother. She said goodbye to Brittany and Emily, who was actually really cool for an eighth-grader. As she drove home, she sang along to the radio, something she hadn't done in a while. She felt happier than she had in a long time. "I had an amazing cheer practice," she said out loud to herself. "I had a great practice and then I went to Brittany's house and talked and laughed and watched _One Tree Hill_. And now I'm driving home and I'm gonna take a long shower and then I'm gonna go to sleep early for the first time since school started." She liked narrating like this. She did it often to keep herself focused on what was happening at that moment, to forget about her mother and all the drama that had happened. It worked, but only for a short time, because as soon as she pulled into her driveway, the hooded figure sitting on her doorstep brought her back to reality.

Quinn killed the engine and climbed out of her car. "Rachel?" she called through the darkness, grabbing her backpack from the backseat and making her way towards the house. As she got closer, the figure stood, and Quinn saw that it was, in fact, Rachel—the argyle sweater had been unmistakable even by moonlight. Quinn walked towards her, pulling her key out of her backpack as she did so. When she reached Rachel, she breezed right by her, going straight towards the door.

"I'm sorry to come over like this," Rachel said quietly as Quinn fumbled with the doorknob. Her shaking hands caused her to miss the lock several times, and she shifted so that Rachel wouldn't see. When she finally got the door open, she stepped inside and turned on the porch light. Rachel was thrown into view and Quinn could see the dark bags under her eyes and her worried expression.

"You should have called," Quinn said shortly. "I went to a friend's house." She stepped aside, giving Rachel permission to enter the house. As soon as she did, Quinn closed the door with a snap.

"Santana's house?" Rachel asked.

"No. Brittany's." Quinn led Rachel into the dining room, needing to sit before her shaking legs gave her away. She was desperately nervous to be in Rachel's presence now that the circumstances had changed—it was why she had been avoiding Rachel in the first place. Quinn turned on the light and sat at the formal dining table that they never used anymore. Rachel sat across from her, playing with her fingers anxiously. Quinn waited for her to speak.

"You and Santana broke up, didn't you?" she asked finally.

Quinn swallowed. There was no point in denying it, since she had done it for Rachel, after all. "Yes," she said.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was waiting," Quinn replied. "I guess, waiting until an appropriate amount of time had gone by."

"Things didn't go well." It wasn't a question. It was a statement. Quinn could do nothing but nod as tears entered her eyes and threatened to spill down her face. "I'm sorry," Rachel continued.

"You're not," Quinn croaked.

"Yes I am," Rachel protested. "I hate to see you like this, and I do care about Santana's well being. And fights within the New Directions make for a bad group dynamic that hurts us in competition."

"No, Rachel," Quinn said more firmly. "I don't want you to be sorry."

"Why?" Rachel asked, perplexed.

"Because I want you to be happy," Quinn said. "I want you to be jumping for joy because I'm...yours now."

Rachel bit the corner of her lip, but it didn't stop a small smirk from crossing her face. "Is that so?" she asked, with a hint of teasing in her voice.

"I guess," Quinn said. Suddenly, she smiled. "I mean, if you still want me."

Rachel's eyes swept over the part of her body that wasn't obscured by the table, and Quinn visibly shivered. "I want you very much," she said.

Quinn let out a long sigh of relief. "Good," she said. Then she laughed shakily.

"What?"

"My heart is pounding so hard right now." Quinn blushed and giggled. "It's, like, slamming against my ribs, it's almost painful."

Rachel giggled too and looked at Quinn with a hint of nervousness. "I'm pleased to see I have that kind of affect on you," she said. Then her face sobered slightly. "So what does this mean...for us? And Santana?"

Quinn's giddy mood immediately began to dissipate. "I wish you wouldn't say the S word, Rach," she said.

"Well, we _do_ need to address it," Rachel said apologetically.

"I know." Quinn sighed. "Well, Santana knows what I want. She's expecting it. So..."

"Maybe we should maintain some discretion, at least at the beginning," Rachel suggested. "I've never really liked couples that were big on PDA, anyway. And after all, I've never been with a girl, so this is new territory for me. I'll have to deal with coming out and all of that..."

"Whenever you're ready to do all of that, Rachel, I'll help you," Quinn said quickly. "I've been there, I understand if you need some time."

"I'm not worried," Rachel assured her. "I'm just saying that it has to be done. And in the meantime, we can keep things casual around Santana until she's had some time to process everything. It probably wouldn't hurt if we stroked her ego a little bit, too." Rachel frowned suddenly. "I guess I can give her a solo for Invitationals." The idea seemed immensely unappealing to her, and Quinn couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm sorry," she said. "You're just adorable."

Rachel flushed at the unexpected compliment. "I try," she said with false bravado. Then, in a more timid voice, she asked, "Would it be okay if I...kissed you?"

Quinn smiled wider. She didn't think it was possible for Rachel to be any cuter. "You have to ask, really? After you attacked me on Santana's couch?

Rachel looked ashamed at the memory. "I guess I let my emotions get the better of me," she said.

"Well, I always knew you had that tendency."

"So does this mean that you won't object if I walk over to you now and initiate a make out session?"

"Yes," Quinn smirked. Then she paused. "Actually, no." She looked at Rachel, her face suddenly serious. "I would _love _that, believe me," she said, "but I don't think it's a good idea. Not yet."

Rachel looked at her in disappointment. "We're just in your house, nobody's here."

"I know, I know," Quinn said, "but I've already messed up three relationships and it would kill me to ruin this one, too. I need to do this right. So." She took a deep breath. "Will you go out with me?"

Rachel's face immediately lit up. "I would be honored," she said, mocking Quinn's formality.

"Lovely," Quinn said. "Um...when are you free?"

Rachel laughed. "Aren't you supposed to suggest a time and place?"

Quinn shrugged. "I haven't really done this before."

"Well, might I suggest tomorrow after the football game? And dinner and a movie never seem to go amiss. And afterwards, we can get ice cream and walk around the city at night and enjoy the warm weather while it lasts."

Quinn snickered. "Are you going to make a schedule, too?"

"Don't tempt me." Rachel smiled. "I can't wait."

Quinn smiled back. "Me neither."


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: This note is for explaining my pacing reasons to some reviewers, so if you don't care, happily skip to the story :) **

**Some people expressed frustration with the lack of Brittana and the abundance of Faberry, since this story is listed under Brittana and not Faberry. FF net only lets you post it under two characters, so I really just had to randomly pick one of the pairings to list it as. I'll admit I have more respect for Brittana since they are actually my canon OTP, but that doesn't mean that this _isn't _a Faberry story. However, it is Brittana-centric to the extent that THIS story will end when THEIR story ends, so to everyone reading for Brittana, I don't think you'll be disappointed. Keep in mind also that when this story started, Rachel and Quinn had already admitted they had feelings for each other, while Brittany and Santana had just met for the first time EVER. I think Brittana need to get to the point where they know each other well enough to realize that this is not just a passing crush, and this realization is what I'm going to be working towards in the final chapters. I need them to trust and respect each other as people before they can be girlfriends. So that's where I'm planning to go with this, and if you don't want to read it anymore, I won't be offended. But I will say as one final incentive for you to continue reading that once Rachel and Quinn have worked everything out, they will become less prominent, while Brittany and Santana will be more so in upcoming chapters.**

**I feel like Brad Falchuk, trying to explain why Brittana didn't end with a bang :/ But seriously, I'm not mad or offended or anything, I just really don't want people to think I am neglecting Brittany and Santana. That being said, enjoy some more Faberry...**

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><p>It seemed that everyone in the whole school had decided to go to the football game. As halftime approached, Santana felt light and happy for the first time in weeks. McKinley had maintained the lead since their early touchdown, and the other team already seemed to be losing their fight. When Puck caught a long pass from Finn and ran to within ten yards from the end zone, Santana was surprised to find that she didn't have to fake her subsequent enthusiasm. Quinn's presence wasn't hurting her as much as usual, and her awkwardness with Brittany had subsided enough that she was able to throw her arms around the blonde's neck when Artie managed to wheel himself into position to catch the ball for another touchdown. The team that they were playing had a history of beating McKinley, and the excitement coming from the huge number of fans in the stands was contagious. When halftime finally came, the boys left the field to a roar of cheering, and Santana confidently led the Cheerios onto the field for their halftime dance. There was nothing like performing to a packed stadium on their home field when they were in the lead, and as they took their positions, she bounced on her heels, full of energy. She looked up to the box at the top of the bleachers, where she knew some loser like Jacob or Lauren Zizes was about to turn on the music.<p>

But it didn't come. Santana's excitement turned to nervousness as the crowd waited in silence for them to start. Nobody spoke, but she could sense the other Cheerios behind her becoming restless. Santana looked to Sue and saw anger cross the coach's face as she turned to glare up at the box where the sound people were located. Then, suddenly, a light buzzing came through the speakers. Then a voice. "Greetings, McKinley," it said, echoing eerily through the empty stadium. Santana couldn't tell if it belonged to a man or a woman, as it had been edited with some kind of program to sound robotic and fuzzy. "You are about to watch a performance that will likely leave you in awe. You will probably think that these cheerleaders are the most talented young women you have ever seen, and you will gape in wonder at the miraculous human being that is Sue Sylvester. But I would like to set things straight. Sue Sylvester is not a champion. She is a devil."

Santana's eyes widened in horror. She could hear the girls around her beginning to whisper worriedly to each other, but she was too stunned to tell them to be quiet. In front of her, Sue turned towards the crowd, holding the megaphone to her mouth. "Can someone turn that thing off, please?" she shouted angrily. But the crowd seemed paralyzed as well. Only Mr. Schuester moved to action, pushing his way past a bunch of people that included a shocked Judy Fabray and ran towards the stairs, taking them two at a time. As he made his way upward, the voice continued.

"Her Cheerios are no better. Far from being talented, these girls are the most evil beings ever to walk the halls of McKinley. You need proof? I can give it to you. Let's look at the roster, shall we?" A shuffling of paper was heard over the speakers, exaggerated for effect. Will's figure became smaller and smaller as he moved closer to the top of the stands, and Santana's legs began to shake as she prayed he would move faster. "Quinn Fabray," the voice read, and Santana felt her heart drop. "You already know her as a pregnant slut. But what you might not have heard yet is that she is a cheater...and a dyke."

Will threw open the door to the sound booth and ran inside, shutting off the speakers. A whisper spread through the crowd, sounding like a swarm of bees as it traveled down to the field. Santana looked over at Quinn, who was looking straight at her. They made eye contact and Quinn looked at her, searching for someone to blame. Santana knew she had the most obvious motive, but she could do nothing to defend herself. The horror on her face, however, seemed to say enough. Quinn swallowed hard and gave a very sharp nod. Then she turned suddenly and sprinted off the field, disappearing behind the bleachers. A collective gasp came from the Cheerios, but nobody moved to follow her. Before Santana could decide if she should go after Quinn, the music that they were meant to dance to came over the speakers.

Santana's heart started pounding. She looked helplessly at Sue, wondering how they were expected to perform after that, but Sue was looking at them with a livid expression and Santana knew that their routine was the only thing that could save them from instant death. She moved robotically, her muscle memory keeping her in step while her brain fizzled out into a jumbled mess. She felt Brittany fall into step next to her, taking Quinn's spot. When Santana was supposed to use Quinn's hand as a springboard for her lift, she found Brittany instead, waiting to support her. When she jumped back down, Brittany's strong arms around her were the only things that kept her from collapse. Normally she would have been impressed at how effortlessly Brittany filled in the missing space on the team, but she could barely focus on anything other than getting out of the routine and going to find Quinn.

When they finished, the crowd applauded politely, but it was nothing compared to the onslaught of cheering that they should have gotten. People began to stand, using the halftime as an excuse to get food and leave the uncomfortable atmosphere. Santana had only one thought—_find Quinn—_but as they walked off the field, Sue wordlessly motioned towards the Cheerios locker room. Santana knew that her future as a Cheerio—and possibly her future as a living, breathing human being—depended on her obedience, so she reluctantly followed Sue, fighting off the urge to throw up. A hand rested on the small of her back and she turned in surprise to see that it was Becky Jackson. But she was too overwhelmed to move away, so she allowed Becky push her gently, guiding her all the way back to the Cheerios locker room. When they got inside, they all sat down on the bench, and Sue turned on them with hatred in her eyes. "Excuse my language," she said in a dangerous voice, "but who the _fuck_ is responsible for this?"

Nobody spoke. Then one of the new sophomores on the team raised her hand tentatively. "I don't think it was any of us," she said.

"Yeah," someone else piped up. "It was someone who hates the Cheerios. We wouldn't do this to ourselves."

"It sounded like the recording was going to say something bad about everyone," the first girl continued. "So it obviously wasn't someone on the team."

"There's one way to find out." Everyone looked up at Hannah Smith, one of the seniors on the team who was constantly angry that Santana and Quinn became captains instead of her. She looked around at everyone suspiciously. "Listen to the whole tape. If someone isn't mentioned on it, then we'll know who made it."

Everyone was quiet. It was obvious that the idea of listening to the whole tape didn't appeal to anyone. "I don't want to," Brittany said quietly, voicing the thoughts of everyone. "And I trust all of you. If you say you didn't do it," she shrugged, "then I believe you."

Santana felt a small amount of comfort at her words, but it didn't do enough to assuage the horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach. She just wanted to see if Quinn was okay. It didn't matter that they had broken up or that Quinn had cheated—she was Santana's best friend, and nobody deserved to have things like that broadcasted to the whole school and their parents. But Sue was looking at them now with quiet determination. "I'll tell you what we're going to do," she said. "We're going to go back out there with smiles on our faces and cheer our boys to their first victory against the Panthers. And then we're going to go home and we're not going to talk to anyone about this. When Monday comes..." She paused and gave a vindictive smile that made Santana nervous, even though she knew Sue's wrath would not be directed at her, "we're going to get to the bottom of this. I don't care what it takes."

"Coach," Santana said, her voice cracking as she spoke. "Can I find Quinn?"

"I'll take care of Quinn myself," she said, and Santana slumped in her chair in disappointment. Then Sue's voice took on a softer quality that Santana had never heard before. "I need you right now, S. We have ten more minutes before we need to get back on the field and I want everyone to compose themselves. You're in charge."

Santana nodded and found herself absentmindedly reaching to her side. She didn't know what exactly she was trying to grab onto, but when Brittany's fingers wrapped tightly around her palm, she knew that she had found what she was looking for. Breathing deeply, she thought, _You're Santana fucking Lopez. You need to do this_. Then she gave Brittany's fingers a squeeze and stood up. "Come on girls," she said. "You have a five minute break and then I want you back here for some stretches. Let's go!"

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><p>Judy didn't wait to see the routine that the girls had prepared for the halftime show. As soon as Quinn left the field, she was up out of her seat, pushing past parents in a desperate attempt to reach the aisle. The old Judy, the one who was married to Russell Fabray, would have hid shamefully if her family had been embarrassed like that. But she was a different woman now, the kind that didn't give a damn about anything but her daughter. Heads turned as she ran across the bleachers, her heels thudding into the metal and causing the entire structure to shake. But Judy didn't care that all of McKinley high was witnessing her vulnerability. She was so focused on reaching Quinn that she didn't even notice that she wasn't the only one on the move. As she passed one of the aisles, Rachel Berry, who had been taking the steps two at a time, collided with her.<p>

"Ms. Fabray!" Rachel said in surprise. Judy stopped running and looked at Rachel, whose dark eyes were filled with concern. "I was—I was just..."

"Rachel," Judy said, her voice pleading. "Come with me."

Rachel didn't need to be told twice. She nodded and hurried along behind Judy as they reached the edge of the bleachers started down the stairs. When they reached the field, Judy looked around frantically, wondering where Quinn had gone. "There!" Rachel pointed, and Judy turned to see a red and white clad figure running towards the parking lot. They started after her, Judy wobbling as her heels connected with cement, and just as she was about to tell Rachel to go ahead of her, Quinn tripped. She fell forward into the dirt that lined the side of the asphalt, and she didn't get back up. Judy slipped out of her shoes and left them on the sidewalk as she charged towards her daughter. "Quinn!" she gasped as Quinn lay in the dirt, shaking with sobs. "Oh Quinn..."

Quinn looked up at her mother through tear-stained eyes. "Get away from me," she said, using her shaking arms to pull herself to her feet. "I want to be alone."

"No," Rachel said breathlessly, arriving at Judy's side, and Judy felt a rush of gratitude towards the other girl. She was glad she had asked Rachel to come along. Judy reached forward and grabbed onto Quinn's arm.

"She's right, you're not going anywhere," Judy said. Quinn squirmed and tried to pull away, but Judy held on to her with strength she didn't even know she had.

"Let go Mom, please," she sobbed. Judy reached forward and grabbed her with her other hand, trying to hold her. Quinn continued to struggle, but Judy held her tightly until she eventually collapsed onto her mother's chest, crying hard. Rachel respectfully stood a few feet away.

"You don't need to leave, Quinnie," Judy said softly, stroking Quinn's hair. "I'm right here."

"I'm so humiliated," Quinn cried. "I just want to go home. I'm sorry."

"Please don't apologize to me," Judy said. "That was the way your father did things. That's not us anymore. This isn't your fault." Her voice shook with emotion and she struggled to keep it under control, wanting to be strong for her daughter to make up for all the times that she wasn't strong. "I'm so tired of pushing things under the rug, of running away from the truth," she said, more to herself than to Quinn. "We're going to be on the same side now. I don't want you to be afraid anymore."

Quinn sniffled and lifted her head. She turned to the side. "Rach," she said through tears. Rachel strode forward and Judy released her grasp on Quinn, allowing her daughter to fall into Rachel's arms. They hugged tightly and Rachel rubbed soothing circles onto Quinn's back. It was much more than a friendly embrace and Judy fought the instinct to look away. Part of her was uncomfortable with the way that the two of them were holding onto each other, but a much larger part of her brain could only register the peaceful look that crossed over Quinn's face. Nobody had ever made her daughter look like that before. Not even Santana. When Quinn finally pulled away, she was no longer crying, and she reached down to hold Rachel's hand. Rachel looked at Judy as if to ask for permission, and Judy gave her the tiniest of nods. When she did, Rachel's body relaxed and she laced Quinn's fingers with her own.

"What now?" Rachel asked quietly.

"Now you wash your face," came a voice from beside them, "and go grab your pom poms." Judy looked up to see Sue Sylvester approaching them, and her heart sank.

"Coach," she said in a firm voice. "Quinn might need a moment-"

"She doesn't," Sue said. Then she turned to Quinn. Completely ignoring the fact that the ex-head cheerleader was holding hands with one of the biggest losers in the school, she said, "Q. I want you back out on the field."

"Coach..." Quinn began. Her face was still stained with tears and her muscles were quivering. "I can't..."

"I know you, Q. You're the strongest person on the team. You're the most capable." She spoke slowly, as if she knew that the success of her team rested on this one moment, on Quinn coming back to perform for the rest of the game. Which, Judy thought, it probably did. "You need to do this," she said. "For you. For the rest of the girls. And for those assholes who rigged our dance tape."

Quinn's eyes began to water again. "I'll stay and watch," she said. "But I don't think I can dance. If I sit under the bleachers..."

"Then you aren't the girl that everyone thinks you are," Sue finished for her. Quinn swallowed her next words and Judy watched helplessly. "Listen," Sue said. She leaned down so she was closer to Quinn's eye level. "I realize that this is the hardest thing I have ever asked you to do. It's so hard that I wouldn't even ask it of anyone else. But I'm asking you." Sue took a deep breath. "I'm _begging _you."

Judy could see the defiant look cross Quinn's eyes, and the resolve spread throughout her body, tightening her muscles, making her stand a little straighter. She wiped the latest round of tears from her eyes and said, "Okay," with a sharp nod. Sue looked at her in triumph.

"Good," she said. "You have ten minutes, then I need you on the field. And wash your face."

"Yes Coach," Quinn said. When Sue started to walk away, Quinn let out a shaky breath. Judy rushed forward and placed a comforting hand on Quinn's arm. She wanted to tell her daughter just how proud she was, but there were no words for it, so she stood silently rubbing up and down on Quinn's skin. Rachel still held her other hand tightly, and after a short silence, Quinn said, "I should go wash up."

"I'll help you," Rachel said quickly. Judy let go of Quinn and looked at the two girls. She felt safer knowing that Rachel was still going to be with Quinn, and she was surprised at the sensation.

"I'm going back to the stands," she said. "Remember, ten minutes."

Quinn looked at Judy with an indescribable look on her face. It seemed as though she wanted to say something but that she too was at a loss for words. "Thanks, Mom," she said finally.

Judy just nodded. "I'll see you out there."

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><p>Quinn led Rachel hurriedly back to the Cheerios locker room, where Santana was assembling the girls to lead them back to the field. They looked at her curiously as she walked past them towards the bathroom, and she kept her head down, not wanting them to see her tear-stained face. They got to the sink and Quinn heard everyone's voices become quieter as they left the locker room to go back to the game. She turned on the tap and Rachel went to the paper towel dispenser, collecting several.<p>

"So I was thinking," Rachel said, running the towels under the water, "that perhaps we should change the location of our date. I'm sure my dads would love to have you over for dinner, and I do have an extensive collection of movie musicals in my bedroom." She pulled the towel away from the water and brought it gently to Quinn's face, wiping her cheek. Quinn subconsciously leaned in to her touch.

"No," she said. "I mean, yes, I'd love to come over, but...as friends. I still want to do this the right way."

Rachel nodded. "Although you're immensely frustrating to me right now, I do admire your dedication."

"Next Friday," Quinn promised. "It kills me to wait that long, but..."

"I understand," Rachel said. She wiped Quinn's other cheek and tossed the towel into the trash. Quinn walked back into the locker area, collecting her makeup from her bag. Then she walked back into the bathroom and looked in the mirror.

"Thanks for all of this," she said, applying eyeliner. "You really didn't have to help me."

"I don't take homophobic comments lightly," Rachel said. "And besides, seeing as you're my...almost girlfriend, it was sort of my duty." She smiled bashfully. "I want to do this right, too."

"Almost girlfriend, huh?" Quinn put the eyeliner back in her bag and looked at herself critically in the mirror. Despite a slight reddish tinge to her cheeks, there was no other indication that she had just been crying. She took a deep breath.

"You can do this," Rachel assured her.

Quinn smiled and reached out a hand. Rachel took it and they began to walk back towards the door of the locker room together. As they walked back towards the field, several spectators coming from the snack bar looked at Quinn curiously. She kept her chin jutting forward, not letting go of Rachel until they reached the stairs for the bleachers. When they did, the two of them paused and turned towards one another.

"Break a leg," Rachel offered.

Quinn chuckled. "On the Cheerios, that's an entirely real possibility." Her chest flooded with happiness as she looked at Rachel standing in front of her, and she allowed her eyes to linger momentarily on Rachel's lips. Resisting the urge to lean in and kiss them, she said, "Watch for me during the victory dance. I'll wave."

"I won't miss it," Rachel said, letting go of Quinn's hand and turning towards the stairs, leaning teasingly over her shoulder to keep her eyes locked with Quinn's. "I'll only be watching you."

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><p><strong>AN: So I'm on a really busy college visiting trip right now and I'm not going home until Saturday, so I really can't promise I'll have anything up before I return :( Just wanted to give you a heads up on why there is a little bit of a delay. Thanks for the reviews (so close to 200! It's insane!) and how much did you guys love tonight's season 3 premiere? I thought it was totally awesome. I love all you readers and keep giving me feedback, it's very helpful!**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Back after a long hiatus :( I had a ton of work, but hopefully we can go back to weekly updates now. I feel bad because this chapter is more of a filler than anything :P I need to set up some necessary plot points to get ready for the action. BUT things should pick up soon, THANK YOU to everyone who has continued to read all this time.**

**On another note, I have 200+ reviews? Wow, just...wow. You guys are incredible.**

**P.S. If you forgot what happened because of the long break...Santana and Quinn broke up. Brittany's mom got a job at Dalton. Somebody planted a tape in the sound booth at the football game that was meant to say bad things about all the Cheerios, but Mr. Schue turned it off after it got through insulting Quinn. Rachel and Quinn rescheduled their date to this Friday. And that's what you missed on Glee!**

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><p>On Sunday morning, Brittany agreed to go to Dalton with her mother to help move some boxes into her office. She had been restless and angry since the night before, unable to stop thinking about what had happened at the football game, so she had jumped at the opportunity for a change of scenery. They drove for about an hour until they reached the parking lot behind the school, and Brittany stepped out of the car to get her first look. It really was magnificent. Brittany felt like she was at a college, like one of the old fancy ones that she knew she would never have the grades to go to. She felt too underdressed to be there in her denim shorts and Green Bay Packers t-shirt, with her hair up in a messy ponytail. "Come on," her mother said, walking around to the back and opening the trunk of the car. As if reading Brittany's mind, she added, "no one is going to be awake yet. It's nine on a Sunday."<p>

"Alright." Brittany walked over to the boxes in the back of the car and found the heaviest one that she knew her mother wouldn't be able to carry by herself. She picked it up easily, her muscles flexing under the sleeves of her shirt, and followed her mom across the sloping lawn. They reached a side door and Brittany shifted the box to one hand so she could pull it open. Then they went inside.

The main office of Dalton was exquisite, with large leather couches and paintings of previous headmaster's lining the wall. Mrs. Pierce was the new secretary for the head of the school, and her office was no less impressive. A large, dark desk was in the center of the room, and there were some old senior class pictures on the wall. "It needs a few personal touches," Mrs. Pierce said, watching Brittany as she looked around.

"Well, that's why we're here," Brittany replied, setting the box down. "Should we unpack this first or go and get some more?"

"Why don't you go grab another one and I'll start with these," Mrs. Pierce said. "You're probably better suited to carry boxes than I am."

"Sure." Brittany left the room and wandered back through the maze of couches to the door that led outside. Then she went back to the car, brushing the hair out of her eyes as she walked. Two boys walked past her on the way, looking like they had just come out of their dorms after enjoying sleeping in. A few more boys were lounging on the grass, and Brittany ignored them as she walked back to the car and pulled open the trunk. There were two more boxes inside, and Brittany tested each one. Pretty heavy, but she really didn't want to have to come back, so she took both of them out and set them on the ground. After closing the trunk, she picked up the stack, balancing one precariously on top of the other. Her arms ached, but the walk wasn't too long, so she forced herself to tough it out.

Unfortunately, the stacked boxes severely limited her line of sight. She walked in an awkward zig zag, the stones beneath her feet being the only indication that she was on the right path. As she got close to the building, her foot caught on the edge of a cobblestone and before she could do anything, she found herself tipping forward. The boxes tumbled to the ground and she landed on top of them, her arm sprawled out at an awkward angle. In a daze, she tried to pull herself to her feet, but a sharp pain shot through her wrist and she was unable to support her weight.

"Whoa, are you okay?" a voice called from above her. Brittany shifted slightly and looked straight up, squinting into the sun. A teenage boy was looking back down at her, his face filled with concern.

"Yes," she said, flushing with embarrassment. "I'm fine." She tried again to pull herself up, but winced at the pain. The boy noticed and quickly bent down to help her, placing strong arms beneath her and pulling her slowly to her feet.

"Are these your boxes?" he asked, looking down at them as Brittany stood shakily on her feet, cradling her injured arm.

"Yeah," she said. "They're, uh, they're for my mom." She gritted her teeth. "Ow."

The boy turned towards her and looked at her wrist. "Uh oh. We should get you some ice for that."

"It's fine, really," Brittany insisted. "I think it'll feel better in a minute."

"It's no big deal, really, the kitchen is close." Before Brittany could continue to protest, he said, "Follow me." The boy easily picked up both of Brittany's boxes and she reluctantly followed him into the building that housed Mrs. Pierce's office. Instead of going towards her room, however, they walked across the entrance hall to a small door on the other side. The boy set the boxes down and pushed the door open, leading Brittany inside. They were in a small kitchen, with one refrigerator and two sinks. The boy opened the freezer and began rummaging through it. Then he paused and looked at her. "I'm Blaine, by the way."

"I'm Brittany," Brittany replied, sitting down on a stool by the table and placing her injured hand out in front of her. Blaine wrapped some ice in a rag and brought it over. He reached for her wrist and took it gently, holding the ice on it. Brittany reached forward to take the ice herself, but Blaine didn't move his hand away.

"So I'm assuming you don't go to Dalton," Blaine began.

Brittany's eyes widened. "How did you know?"

"Uh...because it's a boy's school." Blaine cocked an eyebrow and looked at her strangely.

"Oh. Right." Brittany blushed. "Yeah my mom works here. I go to McKinley."

"I've heard of McKinley," Blaine said with a nod. "Mediocre football team, good glee club?"

Brittany nodded. "Yeah! I'm in the glee club."

Blaine grinned. "Uh oh. Looks like we're rivals, then."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm in the glee club here," Blaine explained. "The Warblers. I heard that this year, we might be in your bracket for Sectionals."

"Oh. Good luck!" Brittany smiled and Blaine raised an eyebrow at her. "I mean...I hope you come in second place."

Blaine laughed. "Right back at you." He looked at her, still holding the ice gently on her hand. From up close, Brittany could see a hint of stubble peppering his chin. contrasting with his otherwise crisp appearance. His hooded eyes were looking at her intensely, and Brittany looked back into them until her hand started to ache with cold. She reached for the ice pack and pulled it gently out of Blaine's grasp, clearing her throat.

"Sorry," she said. "Too cold."

"Oh, right," Blaine said, snatching his hand away. "Sure." He stood from his stool. "Just try to keep it on for as long as you can."

"Thanks for your help," Brittany said, standing up, too. "So...see you later, I guess."

"Eager to get rid of me, are you?" Blaine asked teasingly. "What about these boxes? I don't think you can carry them with a bum wrist."

Brittany looked down at her wrist and placed the ice pack back onto her cold skin. "No, I guess not," she said. "Still, I can ask my mom to help me out. You don't have to."

"Too late," Blaine said, striding over to the boxes. He picked them up easily, bouncing them in his arms as he tested their weight. "What is this, a dead body?"

Brittany laughed as they started to walk. "No, silly," she said. "It's stuff for my mom's office. Like, pictures and supplies, I guess."

"Well, it feels like she's got bricks or something." He glanced at her. "You must be pretty strong to have been carrying those all the way from the parking lot." He winked.

"Uh—um I guess," Brittany stuttered. Blaine was definitely flirting, and she wasn't sure how she felt about it. She looked across the hallway instead, trying to remember which door led to her mom's office. "It's this way," she said.

She led Blaine down the hall to her mom's office. Mrs. Pierce was leaning over one of the boxes, searching for something. "Thanks, honey," she said when Brittany walked in. "You can put them over there." She stood and pointed to the corner, and as she did, she noticed Blaine. "Oh. Hello."

"Hi," Blaine said. "I'm Blaine Anderson. I go to Dalton." He set down his box and held out a hand for Mrs. Pierce to shake.

"I'm Mrs. Pierce, nice to meet you," she replied, looking from Blaine to Brittany with a surprised smile. "I didn't know you knew anyone who went here, honey."

"I don't, we just met," Brittany replied, watching as her mom continued to give Blaine a once-over. When Blaine made to move his box out of the way, Mrs. Pierce turned to her daughter and mouthed '_He's cute_.' Brittany just rolled her eyes.

"Anyway," Blaine said, "do you have any more boxes? Anything else I can help you with?"

"Well," Mrs. Pierce began, but Brittany interrupted.

"That's all the boxes. Thanks, though." She smiled at Blaine, and he smiled back.

"Alright," he said. Then he turned to Mrs. Pierce. "So I guess I'll be seeing you around. And hopefully I'll see you again, Brittany."

"Oh, I'm sure you will, dear," Mrs. Pierce beamed. "Enjoy the rest of your weekend."

"Thank you, I definitely will." Blaine made his way over to the door, giving Brittany one last nod before he left. "Nice to meet you."

"You too," Brittany said as he left. Once the door was closed behind him, she turned to her mom. "What was that all about?"

"Oh, Britt," her mom sighed, turning back to her boxes. "He seemed like a nice young man. What's the big deal?"

"You were trying to set me up!" Brittany accused.

"Don't be so dramatic. I was just being friendly." She found a box full of photographs of the Pierces from various family vacations and lifted them onto her empty desk. "Help me put these up, will you?"

"Fine," Brittany said, reaching for the dusty frames. "But I don't really want a boyfriend from Dalton. Just so you know."

Mrs. Pierce raised her eyebrows. "You say that now," she said. "But I have a feeling you'll change your mind."

* * *

><p>Santana slept late on Sunday. Her mother didn't force her out of bed like she usually did, and Santana suspected that it was because of what had happened at the football game. She didn't want to face her family's sympathetic looks, or worse, questions of how Quinn was doing, so she stayed burrowed under her comforter, trying to sleep so she wouldn't have to think about it. Sometime in the afternoon, her mother knocked softly on the door and then came inside. "You have a letter," she said quietly. "It got here yesterday but I forgot to give it to you."<p>

Santana shifted slightly to show that she was awake, and her mother placed the letter down on her nightstand. She lingered, but left when it became clear that Santana wasn't going to speak. When she was gone, Santana reached for the letter and flicked on her bedside lamp. She couldn't imagine who would send something by snail mail. The envelope was a gross lavender color and her name and address were on the front in a scripted font. The return address was there but not the name of the sender, and Santana opened it curiously. There was a square card inside with the same purple color scheme. Santana read it over several times. Then, she got out of bed.

She went downstairs in her pajamas, still holding the card in one hand. Her parents were sitting at the kitchen table, talking quietly, and they looked up when Santana arrived. "What did you get?" Mrs. Lopez asked.

"An invitation," Santana said. She walked towards the refrigerator and opened it.

"To what?" her father prompted.

"A wedding."

"Who's?"

Santana gulped milk out of the carton and then put it back. She dragged her sleeve across her mouth and then said, "Carol Hudson and Burt Hummel."

"Oh, that's lovely!" Mrs. Lopez said. "When is it?"

"In a couple months," Santana said. She leaned against the counter. "I don't even know why I was invited."

"Oh, don't be so negative," her mother chided. "Kurt considers you a friend. And you and Finn used to be close."

Santana scoffed. "Yeah I don't think so."

"Well, you should go anyway."

Santana looked down at the small card behind the invitation, where she was supposed to send back her response. She thought about who would be there—Quinn and Rachel, undoubtedly, and...Brittany. "I don't know," she said. Her eyes started to water and she wiped them in frustration. She was so bad at keeping her feelings in check. "I—I feel weird around my class now."

"Oh, sweetie, come here," her mother said, reaching her arms out. Santana sat in the chair across from her instead. "Why do you feel like that?"

"I don't have any friends," Santana said. Then she took a deep breath. "It's fine, though, it's fine. I don't need them."

"That's not true," her mother said.

"Is this about Quinn?" Mr. Lopez asked, earning him a glare from his wife. Santana started to cry again. "I'm sorry," he said quickly. "You don't need to talk about it."

"I mean, it's okay," Santana said in a muffled voice, her hands over her eyes. "We broke up though."

"And is she...?" her mom began.

"I think so." Santana knew her mom wanted to know if Rachel and Quinn had started dating, but neither one of them wanted to say it aloud. At Santana's words, Mrs. Lopez's face fell and she reached across the table to place a hand on her daughter's arm.

"Oh, honey," she said. "I'm sorry. That's really not fair."

"I don't know what else I could expect, though," Santana said through tears. She hadn't really allowed herself to cry over Quinn and it felt good to finally let it out. "I mean, even if they aren't dating, they still like each other don't they? There's nothing I can really do."

Neither of Santana's parents responded, and she wiped her eyes and looked up at them. Her mother was looking at her father seriously, and as Santana watched, Mr. Lopez shook his head imperceptibly. Then he turned to Santana. "Mija," he began. "We were just wondering...you don't happen to know who was behind that prank at the game last night, do you?"

Santana shook her head. "No," she said. Her parents continued to look at her in concern.

"We won't be mad..." her mother finally began.

"You think I did it?" Santana looked at them incredulously. "Mom, I would never do something so horrible."

"We know, we know," her father said quickly. "We just know how sad you've been all week and we just..."

"We wanted to be sure," Mrs. Lopez finished.

"Well, it wasn't me," Santana said firmly. She wiped fresh tears from her eyes. "I'm not going to do anything to hurt Rachel or Quinn, I'm just...I'm just sad."

Mrs. Lopez reached across the table and took one of Santana's hands in her own, and her father placed a comforting hand on her back. "Don't you worry," Mrs. Lopez said. "Another amazing girl is going to come along. I promise."


	20. Chapter 20

Santana swerved into McKinley's parking lot just as the bell rang on Monday morning. She grabbed her backpack out of her trunk, prepared to sprint to her first class, only to see a large swarm of people making their way towards the gym. Instead of going into the school, Santana joined them, making her way across the football field. "What's going on?" she asked a freshman walking next to her.

The girl looked up at Santana warily. "We're going to gym for an assembly," she said.

"Why?"

"I'm not sure." She turned back towards her friend and Santana's heart sank. Figgins had already scheduled the lecture on drunk driving to occur in a few weeks—Santana knew about it because they'd had to cancel a pep rally and Sue had been furious—meaning the assembly was probably about the incident at the football game. She'd already been dreading coming back to school and hearing everyone's whispers, but she hadn't expected that there would be some sort of statement in front of the whole school. McKinley usually paid little attention to gay issues, but perhaps the bullying was too severe for the board to reasonably let it slide. Santana was dreading the announcements because, despite the fact that she was not mentioned in the tape, everyone knew that she had the most motive to hurt Quinn.

When she got into the gym, she scanned the bleachers anxiously, looking for someone she knew. Quinn was near the front, next to Rachel, and Santana quickly looked away before her ex-girlfriend could make eye contact with her. Mercedes and Tina were sitting on the other side, and since they were the only people Santana could easily spot, she made her way over to them. Despite the fact that the three of them were hardly friends, they still made room for Santana when she came near them. As she took a seat next to Tina, she asked, "Did anyone tell you what this assembly is for?"

"I think Figgins is going to address the thing that happened at the football game," Tina said. Then she looked at Santana and her face paled. "I'm sorry—I didn't mean—um. Sorry."

Normally, Santana would have snapped at her, but right now she wasn't in the mood. "Yeah, I had a feeling that's what it would be about," she said. Someone began to close the doors to the gym as the last people made their way inside, and Santana became nervous. She looked across the gym to the front row where the teachers were sitting, and saw Will next to Emma, his lips pressed tightly together. In fact, most of the teachers looked grim as Figgins walked to the microphone and the talking began to die down.

"Good morning students," he said in a grim voice. He waited until the gym became absolutely silent. "Many of you probably witnessed or heard about the prank that was pulled at the football game two days ago." He paused. "I am here to talk about that now, and I would like a moment of your attention please."

Santana heard a guy behind her begin to whisper to his friend. "I can't believe we're having a whole assembly about this. It's not like the Cheerios didn't deserve what they got."

"Shh!" the friend whispered. "Santana Lopez is right in front of us."

"Whatever," the first guy whispered back. Santana gritted her teeth and kept her eyes on Figgins.

"Bullying of any kind is not to be tolerated at this school," the principal continued. "The fact that this event happened on a Saturday night does not mean that it is not our business. As long as you are representing this school, any acts of bullying that occur are considered to be part of the school's responsibility. The faculty I consider this to be a very, very serious problem." He paused and looked around. Nobody spoke.

"We have made it our priority to find the culprit of this offense. If anybody has any information regarding who may have behind behind these acts, I encourage you to come forward. If you heard any whispering in the halls, or know of anyone who is being verbally or physically abusive, please come to me or any faculty member and we will ensure that the problem does not persist." Several people around Santana began to shift uncomfortably. Most of the school had, at one time or another, fantasized about giving the Cheerios a piece of their mind, and Quinn in particular was a popular target. Everyone seemed to be worried that the blame would somehow fall on them.

"I understand that it can be hard to speak up, especially against your friends or classmates. But it is important to remember that what is right isn't always what is easy. William McKinley High School is named after a president who taught us that important lesson. A proud supporter of the gold standard and the man who led us to victory in the Spanish-American War, his legacy is what makes our school so great. Just yesterday, I was talking to a friend of mine..."

Santana started to zone out as Figgins began to talk about President McKinley and the school's credo. It was a speech he had given many times before, and she had better things to think about. If the words of the guys behind her were any indication, it seemed that almost the entire school had it out for the Cheerios. With that in mind, Santana thought it was very unlikely that Figgins or anybody else would be able to catch whoever was responsible for the prank. She just hoped that, whatever happened, she and Quinn would be able to stay out of the spotlight. She wasn't ready for everybody to know about their failed relationship just yet.

* * *

><p>Rachel looked up eagerly as Quinn entered English class, and she moved her pencil case off the seat next to her that she'd been saving. Quinn spotted her and made her way over, looking relieved that Rachel had gotten them seats in the back row. As she sat, the final bell rang, and Rachel leaned in close. "How are you doing?"<p>

"Few whispers and stares, but nothing too bad," Quinn said. Then she shrugged. "I've had worse."

Rachel frowned sympathetically. "I know you have," she said. "At least this time, though, they are inquisitive rather than cruel."

"I wouldn't bet on that," Quinn replied. "I think most of them are talking about how they think I deserved to be called out like that. And they're wishing the tape had gone on so that the other Cheerios could have been humiliated, too."

Rachel reached under the desk and put her hand on Quinn's leg, making sure that the action was hidden from those around them. They school didn't need more reason to gossip about Quinn. "It doesn't matter," she said. "I know you're not a bad person. Everyone else is crazy not to see that." She moved her fingers lightly across Quinn's pant leg as she spoke. "I'm so lucky to have someone like you," she said as quietly as she could.

Quinn smiled at Rachel in a way that made her heart flutter. "Thanks, Rach," she said. "You're incredbile."

"Please open your books to page two-hundred and thirty four," Mr. Davis announced from the front of the classroom, shocking Rachel into tearing her eyes away from her almost-girlfriend and turning towards her backpack. "We're going to do some reading aloud today."

Everyone groaned. "This is so stupid," Quinn whispered. "He's just doing this so that he doesn't have to teach."

Rachel emerged from her backpack with the book they were reading in one hand and a blank piece of paper in the other. "Guess we'll have to resort to our old pastime," she said, placing the paper on her desk and pulling out her pink pen. Quinn giggled as Mr. Davis called on the first person to read. Rachel tapped her pen against her lip as Quinn looked at her expectantly. She wanted to think of something cute and possibly flirty to write, but with Quinn watching her, it was hard to think. _I hate listening to people read aloud_, she wrote instead. Then she handed the paper to Quinn, who looked at it briefly and began to write back with a smile.

_That's just because you don't like to listen to people besides yourself ;)_

_Perhaps. On another note, did you receive an invitation to the Hummel-Hudsons' wedding?_

Quinn looked over at Rachel and nodded with wide-eyes. _I love weddings_, she wrote. _I'm so excited. Did they invite the whole glee club?_

_I think so_, Rachel wrote back. _I wouldn't expect such charity from Finn, but I bet it was Kurt's idea to invite everyone_. She scowled as she wrote the message, which did not go unnoticed by Quinn.

_Forget about Finn. Besides, I doubt he'll even have a date. He'll be seated at the singles table for sure._

Rachel snickered as she read the note, and she had to quickly hide the paper as Mr. Davis turned her way. He scrutinized her for a moment before looking back towards his book. As the student continued to drone on, Rachel wrote with some trepidation, _And where will I be seated?_

Quinn smiled at Rachel and shook her head slowly. _Next to me, silly!_

Rachel could not keep a silly grin from crossing her face as she thought about being Quinn's date to the wedding. Even though it was in a couple of months, there was no reason why she couldn't start to fantasize about it now. _Wow, I'll have the best seat in the house_, she wrote back.

_You certainly will_, Quinn wrote back, and as she handed the paper to Rachel, she reached forward and brushed Rachel's fingers with her own. Rachel shivered and momentarily lost herself in Quinn's hazel orbs.

"Ms. Berry!" Mr. Davis said firmly. "Are you planning on reading any time soon, or will you continue to pause for dramatic effect?"

"Oh!" Rachel squeaked, blushing and turning away from Quinn. She reached for her book. "Um..."

"The third paragraph on page two-hundred thirty six," Mr. Davis said in exasperation. Rachel found the appropriate part, her face still burning. She had never been called out for not paying attention in class. Right before she began reading, she glared over at Quinn out of the corner of her eye. Quinn just looked back at her like she was the most adorable girl in the world.

Perhaps breaking the rules had been worth it.

* * *

><p>When Santana got to glee club later, she was surprised to see Kurt and Dave Karofsky standing in the front of the room. Dave had his hands shoved deep in his pocket, and his shoulders were raised, lifting his jacket up to his ears. His eyes were fixed on the ground and he looked like he would rather be anywhere else. "Sit down everyone," Mr. Schuester said. He sounded serious. "Kurt has an announcement to make."<p>

"I don't know how many more announcements I can take," Santana muttered, taking the seat nearest to the door. A few more people entered after Santana, and when the whole club was present, they all looked at Kurt and Dave expectantly.

"Well," Kurt clapped his hands together with a smile, "I have some exciting news. Dave and I, with the help of Mr. Schuester as our faculty adviser, have decided to start a Gay-Straight Alliance here at McKinley."

Santana groaned. "You kidding me, Lady Lips? A GSA? Why don't you just vomit rainbows on us instead?"

Kurt looked at Santana warily but ignored her. "In light of the recent events, we thought that we needed a way to bring some awareness of gay issues to our community. I'm bringing the idea here first in the hope that a few of you will want to join and encourage your friends to take part." Kurt grinned again, looking as though he'd just beat out Rachel for a solo. "I can't wait!"

"Okay, hold on," Finn said, looking at Kurt with narrowed eyes. "What's he doing here?" He pointed to Karofsky, who had been slowly shrinking into his jacket ever since Kurt had started to talk.

"Dave's helping me out," Kurt said, his smile faltering slightly. "He agreed to be the co-president with me." Dave's face flushed bright red and Santana looked at him suspiciously.

"Why him, though?" Finn demanded, voicing Santana's thoughts. "He's done nothing but bully you for years."

"I agree with Finn," Mercedes said. "I want to help you out, Kurt, but why should we trust this guy?"

Dave looked at Kurt helplessly and Kurt looked back, his mouth slightly open as he searched for the right words. Santana watched Kurt carefully as he began to speak. "Dave's had a change of heart," Kurt said. "He's helping me out as a...sort of an apology."

Santana shook her head. The situation was so transparent that it was almost amusing. But she couldn't tell if the rest of the club saw through Dave's motives—after all, she did have an exceptional gaydar. She didn't have too much time to think about it, though, because when Rachel stood up, she had to dig her fingernails into her arm to keep herself from starting a fist fight. "I, for one," Rachel began obnoxiously, "think it's a wonderful idea. Of course, having gay dads, I consider myself very much a part of the gay community. I've faced much of the same adversity that LGBT kids have faced at this school and I would love a forum to express some of my thoughts. And given some recent changes in my life..." she looked down at Quinn with a sickening smile and Santana dug her nails into her arm, "I could use a supportive community right now."

"Perfect," Kurt said in a strained voice, and Santana was relieved to see that she was not the only one irritated by Rachel's passionate speech. Kurt then looked at Santana hopefully, and her blood began to run cold as many sets of eyes began to look at her. She was saved, however, when Quinn raised her hand from the other side of the room.

"I'll be there, too, Kurt," she said quietly. "Thanks. I think this is a really good idea."

Santana could not contain herself any longer. "Really, Quinn?" she snapped. "You've softened up already?"

Quinn looked at Santana worriedly. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said, her eyes pleading Santana to be quiet. But Santana was having none of it.

"I knew that Berry juice would do something to your system," she said angrily. "You should hear how retarded you sound right now."

"I—I just," Quinn stuttered, as everyone else looked between the two of them in surprise. Even Rachel seemed too shocked to butt in. "Santana, they want to help us. People like us. I mean."

Santana stood, her eyes narrowed at Quinn. She fisted her hands to keep them from shaking. "I don't know what you mean by 'us.' I'm not like you." She turned to Kurt. "I'm not like any of you. And I'm not going to join your stupid GSA so just leave me the fuck alone, okay?"

She picked up her backpack and stormed towards the door, past caring that her move was incredibly Rachel-esque. As she pulled it open, she could hear Dave say quietly, "No one asked her to join." She turned around as she cleared the doorway and saw Kurt shrug helplessly. From the other side of the room, Brittany was watching her in concern. But then she let the door slam slut behind her, and everyone's faces disappeared.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: There will be Brittana next chapter I_ promise_.**


	21. Chapter 21

Santana loved evenings alone. It was rare for her entire family to be out at the same time, but when they were, Santana always celebrated in the same way. On Friday night, Christian went to a party and Marco went to spend the night at a friend's house, leaving her parents free to go on their date night and Santana free to eat junk food in front of the T.V. for several hours. She was just settling into the cushions, remote in hand, when she heard a soft knock coming from the front door.

At first, she thought she might be imagining it, or that it was coming from the television. But when she turned down the volume, the knock persisted, and with a sigh, she pulled herself up and padded over to the door. She raised herself onto her toes and glanced through the peephole. When she saw who it was, her heart rate quickened, and she opened the door tentatively. "Uh, hey," she said.

"Hi," Brittany replied. She looked uncomfortable. Santana saw car keys twisted around her finger and noticed that she was holding a purse over one arm. "Um, what are you up to?"

"Not...not much," Santana replied. There was an awkward silence. "Do you want to come in?"

"Just for a minute," Brittany said. Santana looked at her curiously but opened the door the rest of the way to allow Brittany to come inside. The T.V. was still on in the living room, and Santana saw Brittany's eyes flicker over to the liter of soda and family size bag of Doritos on the coffee table.

"So, what's up?" Santana asked.

"I'm so sorry," Brittany said suddenly. "Are you having friends over?"

"What? No." Santana shook her head. "No, it's just me."

"Oh." Brittany looked at the food again, one eyebrow slightly raised. Santana blushed but didn't say anything. "Okay well I guess I was wondering if you wanted to...like...go out."

"Go out?" Santana's heart skipped a beat.

Brittany nodded. "Yeah, like, go somewhere. It's Friday and everyone's busy and I just thought..." She trailed off and shrugged.

"Right," Santana said, momentarily shocked by what she thought Brittany had meant. "I...um...okay..."

"Santana, I miss you," Brittany blurted out. "I miss you so much and I thought we were going to be best friends. I'm sorry for everything I did and I just want to hang out with you. Can we please be friends again?" She chewed her lip between her teeth and looked at Santana in nervous anticipation.

Santana took a deep breath. Truthfully, she missed spending time with Brittany, too. She was just scared of what it all meant. "I'm sorry too," she said finally.

Brittany sighed in relief and smiled. "Good," she said. "We've just been so sad all week and I hate being sad. I want to do something fun."

Santana looked at the T.V. and her snacks and shrugged. "Well, we have an empty house and some junk food," she offered.

Brittany shook her head. "No offense, but I want to do something more fun than that." She looked at Santana hopefully and Santana couldn't help but smile.

"Alright, boss," she conceded. "You make the plans."

"I already have an idea," Brittany said slyly.

"Oh, do you?"

"Yup." Santana looked at Brittany expectantly, but Brittany shook her head. "It's a surprise."

Santana looked at Brittany for a long time. _This girl_, she thought to herself. _I should just send her home before this gets dangerous. Doesn't she know I hate surprises? _Santana was ready to demand an explanation, but Brittany looked so eager that the words died on her lips. "Fine," she said instead. "Let me get my shoes."

* * *

><p>"I hear this movie is supposed to be really good," Rachel said as Quinn handed her credit card through the ticket window. "The critics gave it mixed reviews, but Rotten Tomatoes users had a generally high opinion of it. They seemed to think the plot was somewhat weak, but the female lead is very attractive. The guy is pretty good looking as well, though I don't know how much that will influence your opinion." She looked at Quinn. "What do you think?"<p>

"I'm thinking I don't care so much about the movie," Quinn said with a smirk, looking once again at Rachel's tantalizingly short skirt. "And I can tell by your rambling that you're nervous."

Rachel blushed deeply. "Oh no. Am I rambling?"

"A little," Quinn admitted. Rachel pouted and Quinn reached over, running a hand through her soft brown hair. "But it's adorable. Don't stop."

"Hmph," Rachel said, crossing her arms across her chest. "Well, I can't think of anything else to say."

Quinn looked at Rachel in mock outrage. "What? You didn't prepare first-date conversation cards?" She wagged a finger. "Having a few prepared statements in your pocket can be invaluable, you know."

"Oh, stop it," Rachel said, shoving Quinn lightly on the shoulder. "Okay, so maybe I did a _little _bit of research beforehand, so what? Scoring a date with the most popular girl in the school is not an honor I take lightly. Not that it matters that you're popular," she said quickly. "I would date you if you were one of those losers that got thrown in the dumpster. Well, maybe after you took a shower, but I would still date you."

"If you don't shut up, I'm going to have to find another way to keep you quiet," Quinn warned. She looked at Rachel suggestively and Rachel gulped.

"I—well, I actually have to perform a monologue in acting class, and I think I'll practice it now, if you don't mind," Rachel said quietly. Quinn laughed.

"I meant I'll shut you up with popcorn, you perv," Quinn said, walking towards the concession stand. "You want some?"

"Of course," Rachel replied, reaching for her purse. "Let me pay for it, though."

"Nope," Quinn shook her head, already several steps ahead of Rachel as she placed some bills on the counter. "This is all on me. I'm the one who asked _you_ out, remember?"

Rachel sighed in defeat. "Fine," she said. Quinn got their popcorn and they walked towards the theater. When they reached the door, Quinn made a big show of holding it open for her girlfriend. "You're such a show-off, you know that?" Rachel said. "You love attention just as much as I do."

"Maybe," Quinn smirked. "I just want to make sure this is good enough. You know, so you'll want an encore."

"Well, save it," Rachel said, taking Quinn's hand and leading her up the rows of seats, all the way to the back row. "I already know I'm gonna see the next performance." They sat down, Quinn balancing the popcorn on one of her knees. Nobody was looking at them in the darkened theater, so Rachel leaned over and placed a kiss on Quinn's cheek. When Quinn turned towards in her surprise, Rachel kissed her again on the lips.

"Wow," Quinn breathed. "Eager, much?"

"I know it's romantic to wait until the end of the date and all that," Rachel said, "but we've kissed already before and...I don't want to wait." She blushed but there was lust in her eyes, and Quinn shivered in anticipation. She reached her hands around Rachel's head and tangled her fingers in Rachel's hair, leaning forward to kiss her once more.

"We're definitely not going to be watching the movie," Quinn said when she pulled away for air.

Rachel just shrugged. "Like I said, it got mixed reviews from the critics." Then their lips met once more and they didn't talk for the rest of the night.

* * *

><p>"We're at, like, the edge of town," Santana said, leaning her head against the window. "Are you sure you know where you're going?"<p>

"Of course!" Brittany said. Santana looked at her doubtfully. "What?"

"It's just that haven't lived here for very long. And..."

Brittany looked at Santana out of the corner of her eye. "And?"

"And I had to remind you like ten times how to get to all your classes!" Santana said teasingly.

Brittany rolled her eyes, but a small smile crept across her face. "Don't worry. I know exactly how to get there. I won't get us lost."

"Alright," Santana said. "I trust you."

"Hey, you never said anything about my car!"

Santana sat up straight, looking around. "This is yours?" she asked. It was a used Honda Civic, a couple of years old but still in good shape. Santana had assumed that it belonged to Brittany's mother. "That's so cool. Congratulations!"

"Thanks," Brittany said. "My parents just got it for me yesterday."

"To be honest, I wasn't sure that you knew how to drive."

"Wow," Brittany said. "First you accuse me of not knowing how to read a map, and now I can't drive? What else can't I do?"

Santana bit her lip. "I'm sorry," she said. "That came out wrong."

"It's alright, I'm just teasing," Brittany said. "A lot of people think I'm dumb."

"I don't think you're dumb," Santana said quickly. "I didn't mean it that way."

"I know." They stopped at a red light and Brittany took the opportunity to look over at Santana. "I can do more than you think," she said, a slightly suggestive look in her eye. Santana shivered. "And I know you weren't being mean, so it's okay," she said, her tone becoming light again. "I know you aren't gonna throw slushies at me or anything."

Santana felt a sharp pain her her stomach. "People threw slushies at you?"

"Once or twice. They were kind of yummy." Brittany shrugged, still staring straight at the road. "It wasn't that bad. I mean, it was kind of cold, but then a few nice girls saw and helped me clean it off."

"That's awful," Santana said quietly. "I'm so sorry." She couldn't help but feel that the slushies were somehow her fault. She had never been the victim of an attack—in fact, she had helped Quinn initiate more than a few—and she felt that her rejection of Brittany had somehow made her an easier target. And the way Brittany told the entire story with a cute little smile on her face only made Santana feel worse. Especially since she knew that she had been the person who once made that smile go away.

"We're here!" Brittany said suddenly, and Santana tore her eyes away from the girl and looked out of the window. Brittany was pulling into a parking lot next to a large field that was full of lights. Santana could see lots of people walking around and could hear the dull echo of talking and laughter through the walls of the car. "I drove by this on my way back from Dalton and I knew I wanted to come back."

Santana continued to examine the field, and her eyes lingered on the sign over the entrance. "A pumpkin patch?" She raised her eyebrows at Brittany. "In September?"

"It's never too early for pumpkins," Brittany said, killing the engine and grabbing her purse from the backseat. "Come on, let's go!"

Santana looked at Brittany incredulously. What kind of person would take someone to a pumpkin patch at the edge of Lima? But Brittany wasn't like other people, Santana had come to realize. Shaking her head, she unfastened her seatbelt and got out of the car. As soon as she had emerged, Brittany made a beeline for the entrance, and Santana followed her. There was a man at the gate selling tickets. Brittany pulled out her wallet and Santana reached for her own.

"Nope," Brittany said, smacking her hand away. "I'm paying. Since I basically dragged you here against your will."

Santana was taken aback by Brittany's forcefulness. "Alright," she said as Brittany handed over some bills. "If you let me buy you something inside."

They walked in, Brittany clutching two paper wristbands in her hand. "I'll let you know if I see anything," she said with a wink. Then her eyes trailed over to a large structure in front of her. "Oh my God! They have a Ferris wheel, come on Santana, let's go!"

Santana laughed at her enthusiasm. "Alright, alright, chill. We have to put on our wristbands." She grabbed hers from Brittany and began to awkwardly fasten it around her wrist. Next to her, Brittany struggled with her own.

"I can't get it fastened," she said, moving her hand and frowning as the wristband fell to the ground. She picked it up and looked over at Santana. "How did you do that?'

"Here." Santana took Brittany's hand in her own and began to gently put on the wristband, not oblivious to the way that her fingers brushed the delicate skin on the inside of Brittany's wrist. She looked up at Brittany to gauge her reaction to the contact, but Brittany was looking excitedly at the rides. As soon as Santana got the band on, she sprang to life again.

"Let's go!" Santana followed her over to the line, where they stood behind a few other people. "I'm so excited," Brittany said. "I love going on rides."

"I used to love it, too," Santana said.

"Why don't you love it anymore?"

Santana shrugged. "I don't know. I got older, I guess."

Brittany shook her head. "You're never too old for the Ferris wheel, silly!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Santana said. "It's still okay to act like a kid sometimes. I guess I never really took advantage of that. I always just wanted to grow up."

"No, I mean, you're never too old because the Ferris wheel has no height limit," Brittany said. "Like, see that ride over there?" She pointed to a ride with cars going around a small track. "If you go on that one and you're too tall, you'll get your head chopped off."

Santana pretended to gasp. "Oh no!" she said. "I like my head."

Brittany giggled. "I like your head, too," she said. They made eye contact and Santana felt the familiar feelings of attraction that she'd been trying to ignore since they'd first met. She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket and she looked at Brittany apologetically.

"I'm sorry," she said as she pulled it out. "It could be my parents. I forgot to leave a note."

"No problem," Brittany said as Santana scanned the text message. It wasn't from her parents, it was from Puck. She opened the text and read it.

**Puck: **_you with britt?_

_Yeah, _she typed back. Then she put the phone back into her pocket. Maybe it was time to stop ignoring the feelings, she thought. After all, she was single. Recently single, sure, but Quinn had already moved on. And her mother had said that she should try to meet an another amazing girl. Maybe Santana had already found her. Slipping her hands into her pockets, she looked up at the cloudless night sky. "You know," she said carefully, "this is a really cute idea for a date." Then she looked over at Brittany.

"Yeah, it is," Brittany agreed. "I wish I could meet the kind of guy who would take me here, you know? Instead of to the usual places."

Santana bit her lip. "Yeah, I know what you mean," she said.

"And then we could kiss on top of the Ferris wheel!" she said, clapping her hands together. She glanced over at Santana. "Most guys just want to go to dinner or go to the movies, over and over. Is it the same with girls?"

"It was with Quinn," Santana said, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach. "But you would have to add shopping and mani-pedis to that list."

Brittany laughed. "That's fun, though, that you get to do girly stuff with your girlfriends. Most guys are, like, scared to do anything girly for some reason."

"Yeah, I've noticed that, too," Santana replied, feeling confused. Was this not the same girl who had been questioning her sexuality only a week and a half ago? Why was she acting like she was completely straight? Santana was sad but not unsurprised. Brittany was just an incredibly friendly person. It made sense that she would confuse her feelings of friendship for feelings of lust, but clearly, she had done some soul-searching that had put her on the right track. Santana stared down at the ground, fighting back her emotions. Her phone buzzed once again.

**Puck: **_she's into my boy mike_

**Santana: **_huh?_

Brittany was mesmerized by watching the people around her, so Santana kept her phone out and waited for the response. Puck certainly didn't mean what Santana thought he meant, did he?

**Puck: **_she wants to get a piece of m-chang! Q told me._

Santana closed her eyes, trying to center herself. When she opened them, there was another message.

**Puck: **_she's smoking, but he's in love with tina. he doesn't want there to be any trouble._

_I'll keep an eye on her_, Santana typed back, silencing her phone and sliding it miserably back into her pocket. Brittany was looking at her curiously. "What's wrong?" she asked.

Santana forced a smile. "Nothing," she said breezily. "I'm fine."

"Cool," Brittany said. They got to the front of the line and Brittany bounced on the balls of her feet. "Yay! We're close. Thank you so much for coming her with me, Santana."

Santana watched her and her heart lifted. "Thanks for pulling me out of the house," she said.

"I'm just so glad we're best friends again," Brittany said, unexpectedly throwing herself into Santana's arms. Santana held Brittany's waist and breathed in the scent of her shampoo, feeling dangerously smitten.

"Me too," she said softly.


End file.
